[Captive Galaxy 01] • The Bellerophon · Ambush

UPDATED 2nd EDITION (with additional content)

Chasing a dream couldn't be any more dangerous.

Captain Tilman “Til” Wray originally joined the military in pursuit of the stars. But he found he’d served for far too long protecting the petty interests of others instead of exploring those stars that had called to him in his youth. The military serving Earth, and the greater worlds and outposts of humanity, had become something of which he could no longer be a part. The greed and corruption was simply too much to handle any longer.

Shortly after resigning he was given the chance to follow his dream, but this time as a free man and a privateer. He perhaps signed too quickly on the dotted line when given the opportunity to purchase a massive starship that had been destined for the scrapyard. It seemed too good of a deal and it was. He should’ve read the fine print as of course there were strings attached. There are always strings attached. He found he’d simply exchanged one master for another. The only difference was that instead of serving the corrupt governments and military of Earth he served a corporate master. The corporations leading humanity out among the stars call corruption and greed something else entirely. They call it business as usual.

At least they're honest about it.

Now, Wray plies the transit lanes of interstellar space while leading a crew of castoffs he alone trusts. Aboard the beleaguered Bellerophon, breathing the stale tasting recycled air while light-years from the cradle of humanity, the Belle’ transports cargoes of questionable legality, hunts the rich shipping of rival corporations, battles rivals and raiders, and participates in risky industrial sabotage missions as directed by the home office in an attempt to keep the business afloat.

But what really pays the bills, offers the most lucrative and consistent payouts, are the captured raw technologies once belonging to the ancient Minervan race; an advanced sentient race that disappeared approximately 50,000-years ago. They left behind technological wonders that are propelling humanity hundreds-of-years forward in nearly every field. Alien artifacts and research data is a valuable commodity everyone is hungry for. Hungry enough to kill

Captain Wray, the Belle’, and her crew, have a long and difficult road ahead when a routine hop doesn't exactly go as planned. What happens next will forever alter the course of humanity. But that is just the way things always seem to go, right?

The Bellerophon: Ambush is the first book in the new Captive Galaxy Series. You can read more about the series, spin-offs, associated novellas, and other upcoming fiction projects at: [http://jwkurtz.wordpress.com/](http://jwkurtz.wordpress.com/)