In the House of War

Two hundred years ago, humanity was conquered by the alien Khedai. The aliens brought peace and prosperity, at the cost of human freedom. Some of us embrace the alien empire, others resent it, but no one can escape from it. We are forced to live in a cage the size of the world, watching others travel to the stars while we are confined to the Earth.

Aminata Ndoye is one of the few humans who have ever earned a place as an officer aboard an alien starship. On her first deep-space assignment, she finds herself in the middle of a war, fighting to preserve Khedai sovereignty over the vassal species of their empire. Unfortunately, it may not be the enemy that brings her career to an abrupt and violent end . . .

"In the House of War" is a space-opera novella, about 19,200 words in length.