Taking Flight: Honor & Duty

By Sam Schall and Amanda S. Green

Duty, honor, sacrifice. That motto means everything to newly commissioned Second Lieutenant Ashlyn Shaw. She thinks she understands the meaning of those simple words. Little does she know. Challenged by those who believe she made it through the Academy on her family's coattails, a roommate who just wants to see "some action" and a gunnery sergeant determined to make a real Marine out of her, Ash soon realizes what it really means to be a Marine. As the signs point to war on the horizon, she is determined to do everything she can to serve Fuercon and do the Corps proud.

 

Taking Flight is a short story set in the Honor and Duty series universe.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Hunter's Moon Press
• Release date: May 25, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201101183

Book preview

Taking Flight

Taking Flight

An Honor & Duty Short Story

Sam Schall

Hunter’s Moon Press

Contents

Taking Flight

Vengeance from Ashes preview

Author’s Note

About the Author

Also by the Author

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.

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Copyright © 2016 by Amanda S. Green (writing as Sam Schall). Second edition © 2021 by Amanda S. Green (writing as Sam Schall).

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All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form.

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Hunter’s Moon Press

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Cover art: Spaceship and Inderfarce by Luca Oleastri

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If you enjoyed this short story, please visit my website for information about upcoming titles.

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Taking Flight

Get out of the way, damn it!

A hard hand connected with her shoulder, and the young woman stumbled to her right. As she did, she tightened her grip on her kit, doing her best not to drop it or, far worse, hit someone with it. Fortunately for her peace of mind, not to mention her already nervous stomach, she managed to catch herself before she careened into the group of Naval officers moving briskly along the edge of the walkway. All around her, military personnel, as well as a few civilian contractors, made their way to the different docking areas. Most moved with purpose but none, with the exception of the person who had shoved her aside, seemed to have forgotten the simple rules of military decorum.

Second Lieutenant Ashlyn Shaw spared those others a quick glance. Then she turned her attention to the man who had pushed past her. He and his companion wore the daily uniform of the Fuerconese Marine Corps. A frown touched Ashlyn’s lips. It was bad enough one of them had laid hands on her, shoving her out of the way on a public concourse. Making matters worse was the fact they wore the ship patch of the Heinlein, her new assignment.

Ashlyn blew out a breath and glanced around once more. When she did, she fought the impulse to groan. Standing a few feet away was a tall, muscular Marine corporal who also wore the Heinlein’s ship patch. There could be no mistaking the way he frowned at the two enlisted who continued down the walkway or the speculation in his eyes when he realized Ashlyn had caught sight of him. Like it or not, her day was about to get much more complicated. The real question was whether her assignment would as well.

Much as she would like to ignore what happened and hurry ahead to report for duty, Ashlyn knew better. Only a week might have passed since her graduation, but she was a Marine through and through. She could almost hear her mother, currently on assignment as a company commander with the