Back | Next
   
   Destiny's Sheild
   
   Table of Contents
   Prologue
   Chapter 1
   Chapter 2
   Chapter 3
   Chapter 4
   Chapter 5
   Chapter 6
   Chapter 7
   Chapter 8
   Chapter 9
   Chapter 10
   Chapter 11
   Chapter 12
   Chapter 13
   Chapter 14
   Chapter 15
   Chapter 16
   Chapter 17
   Chapter 18
   Chapter 19
   Chapter 20
   Chapter 21
   Chapter 22
   Chapter 23
   Chapter 24
   Chapter 25
   Chapter 26
   Chapter 27
   Chapter 28
   Chapter 29
   Chapter 30
   Chapter 31
   Chapter 32
   Chapter 33
   Chapter 34
   Chapter 35
   Chapter 36
   Chapter 37
   Chapter 38
   Chapter 39
   EPILOGUE
   Back | Next
   Next
   Destiny's Shield
   

EVIL FROM BEYOND TIME
   The Malwa Empire squats like a toad across 6th century India, commanded by ruthless men with depraved appetites. The thing from the distant future that commands them is far worse. AN ADVISOR WITHOUT A BODY
   Those who oppose the purulent Hell the Malwa will make of Earth have sent a crystal, Aide, to halt their advance. Aide holds all human knowledge-but he cannot act by himself. A CHAMPION FOR ALL TIMES
   Count Belisarius, the greatest general of the age and perhaps of all ages, must outwit the evil empire -- and then, when there is no longer room to maneuver, to meet it sword-edge to sword-edge, because,
   no matter what it costs EVIL CANNOT BE ALLOWED TO RULE MEN!
   "It isn't often you come across a book or series you recommend to everyone. This one is an exception. Buy all the Belisarius books. Read them. No",! After all, miser), loves company, and I shouldn't have to be the only one waiting this hard for number four!"
   --David Weber
   "The battle scenes and strategies are as expert as expected in a book with Drake's name on it. . . "
   -- Publishers Weekly
   Cover art by Keith Parkinson
    Interior maps by Randy Asplund
   Hardcover
   Paperback
   This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.
   First paperback printing, June 2000
   Distributed by Simon & Schuster
    1230 Avenue of the Americas
    New York, NY 10020
   Printed in the United States of America ISBN: 0-671-57872-3
   Copyright © 1999 by Eric Flint & David Drake
   All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.
   A Baen Books Original
    Baen Publishing Enterprises
    P.O. Box 1403
    Riverdale, NY 10471
   http://www.baen.com
   Typeset by Windhaven Press
   Auburn, NH
   Electronic version by WebWrights
   http://www.webwrights.com to Donald
   

   

COSMIC IRONY
   Belisarius sensed a new presence and immediately understood its meaning. He saw a point of light in the void. A point, nothing more, which seemed infinitely distant. But he knew, even in the seeing, that the distance was one of time not space.
   Time opened and the future came.
   The point of light erupted, surged forward. A moment later, floating before Belisarius, was one of the Great Ones. The general understood, now, that he would never see them fully. Too much of their structure lay in mysterious forces which would never be seen by earthly eyes.
   A new voice came to him, like Aide's, in a way, but different. FORCE FIELDS, ENERGY MATRICES. THERE IS LITTLE IN US LEFT OF OUR EARTHLY ORIGINS, AND NO FLESH AT ALL.
   He saw into the being, now. Saw the glittering network of crystals which formed the Great One's—heart? Soul? And there came a sense of mirth; vast, yet whimsical.
   And the general knew, then—finally—that these almost inconceivable beings were truly his own folk. He had but to look in a mirror, to see the crooked smile that would, someday, become that universe-encompassing irony—and that delight in irony. . . . BOOKS IN THIS SERIES
   An Oblique Approach
    In the Heart of Darkness
    Destiny's Shield
    Fortune's Stroke
 
   BAEN BOOKS by DAVID DRAKE
   Hammer's Slammers
    The Tank Lords
    Caught in the Crossfire
    The Butcher's Bill
    The Sharp End
   Independent Novels and Collections
   The Dragon Lord
    Birds of Prey
    Northworld Trilogy
    Redliners
    Starliner
    Mark II: The Military Dimension
    All the Way to the Gallows
   The General Series: (with S.M. Stirling)
    The Forge
    The Hammer
    The Anvil
    The Steel
    The Sword
    The Chosen
    The Reformer
   The Undesired Princess and The Enchanted Bunny
   (with L. Sprague de Camp)
   Lest Darkness Fall and To Bring the Light
   (with L. Sprague de Camp)
   Enemy of My Enemy:
   Terra Nova
   (with Ben Ohlander)
   Armageddon
   (edited with Billie Sue Mosiman)
   BAEN BOOKS by ERIC FLINT
   Mother of Demons
    1632
   Next
   Back | Next
   Contents
   
   
   Prologue
   
   
   It was the Emperor's first public appearance since he had been acclaimed the new sovereign of Rome, and he was nervous. The ambassador from Persia was about to be presented to his court.
   "He's going to be mean to me, Mommy," predicted the Emperor.
   "Hush," whispered the Empress Regent. "And don't call me `Mommy.' It's undignified."
   The Emperor stared up at the tall imposing figure of his new mother, seated on her own throne next to him. Meeting her cold black eyes, he hastily looked away.
   His new mother made him nervous, too. Even though his old mother said his new mother was a good friend, the Emperor wasn't fooled. The Empress Regent Theodora was not a nice lady.
   The Empress Regent leaned over and whispered into his ear:
   "Why do you think he'll be mean to you?"
   The Emperor frowned.
   "Well—because Daddy gave the Persians such a fierce whipping." Then, remembering: "My old daddy, I mean."
   The Emperor glanced guiltily at the figure of his new father, standing not far away to his right. Then, meeting the sightless gaze of those empty sockets, he looked away. Very hastily. Not even his real mother tried to claim that Justinian was a "nice man."
   Theodora, again, hissing:
   "And don't call the Empire's strategos `daddy.' It's not dignified, even if he is your stepfather."
   The Emperor hunched down on his throne, thoroughly miserable.
   It's too confusing. Nobody should have this many mommies and daddies.
   He began to turn his head, hoping to catch a reassuring glimpse of his real parents. He knew they would be standing nearby, among the other high notables of the Roman court. But the Empress
   Regent hissed him still.
   "Stop fidgeting! It's not regal."
   The Emperor made himself sit motionless. He grew more and more nervous, watching the stately advance of the Persian ambassador down the long aisle leading to the throne.
   The Persian ambassador, he saw, was staring at him. Everybody was staring at him. The throne room was packed with Roman officials, every one of whom had their eyes fixed on the Emperor. Most of them, he thought, were not very nice—judging, at least, from sarcastic remarks he had heard his parents make. All four of his parents. The scurrilous nature of officialdom was one of the few subjects they did not quarrel about.