CHECKSUM Checkmate
by Tony Daniel Grayson Navy Letters Home
by Joelle Presby Like Ghost Cat and a Dragon's Dog
by Dave Freer A Murder of Crows
by Alex Hernandez The Age of the Warrior
by Hank Reinhardt Taking the High Road
by R.P.L. Johnson Conella and the Cyclops Sea Serpent of Doom
by John Ringo Landed Alien
by Sharon Lee & Steve Miller Kinderspiel
by Charles E. Gannon Peace Offering
by Wen Spencer Angel in Flight
by Sarah A. Hoyt Away in a Manger
by Wen Spencer

In January of 2011 we started posting free short stories we thought might be of interest to Baen readers. The first stories were "Space Hero" by Patrick Lundrigan, the winner of the 2010 Jim Baen Memorial Short Story Contest, and "Tanya, Princess of Elves," by Larry Correia, author of Monster Hunter International and set in that universe. As new stories are made available, they will be posted on the main page, then added to this book (to save the Baen Barflies the trouble of doing it themselves). This is our compilation of short stories for 2017.

As is usual with such copyrighted material from Baen, the contents may be copied and shared but NOT sold. All commercial rights are reserved to Baen Books.

GO BIG OR GO HOME!

Boomers. Ships of the Line. Star Destroyers. The bigger the ship, the better the bang. From the dawn of history onward, commanding the most powerful ship around has been a dream of admirals, sultans, emperors, kings, generalissimos, and sea captains everywhere. For what the intimidation factor alone doesn’t achieve, a massive barrage from super-weapons probably will.

Thus it was, and ever shall be, even into the distant future. From the oceans of Earth, to beneath the ice of Europa, to the distant reaches of galactic empires, it is the great warships and their crews that sometimes keep civilization safe for the rest of us—but sometimes become an extinction-level event in and of themselves.

In “Superweapon” by David Drake, a fight for possession of an ancient alien warship will determine the fate of two vast interstellar powers. Then in “Hate in the Darkness” by Michael Z. Williamson, a team of libertarian Freeholders must think outside the box to do battle with the might of the United Nations and its powerful navy. And in “A Helping Hand,” Jody Lynn Nye posits an interstellar submarine on a rescue mission behind enemy lines—with the fate of an entire species hanging in the balance.

Big, bold, and edge-of-your-seat space opera and military science fiction from David Drake, Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Michael Z. Williamson, Steve White, Robert Buettner, Susan R. Matthews, Dave Bara, and many more!

WULF’S SAGA CONTINUES

Lord Wulf von Dunstig is in deep trouble. He is surrounded by invading enemies and kingdoms fallen into chaos. Along with dealing with the problems of a realm he never expected to rule, Wulf is in love with the elf maiden Saeunn Amberstone. Saeunn once saved his land. Now she has lost her star-soul and is dying.

Ursel Keiler wishes she could control her errant heart as easily as she can guide the flight of an arrow to a target. She tries to escapes into the woodlands she adores, only to be pulled back by a band of desperate and brave warriors who need her help. But aiding them will lead Ursel straight to Wulf von Dunstig, and to the heartache she is fleeing.

Yet evil cares nothing for human feelings. Now Wulf, Ursel and their friends must find a way to unite the land of Shenandoah against a powerful Roman inquisitor. He not only controls an Imperial Legion, he is also toying with magic that threatens the foundations of existence itself. Yet there is hope even in the deepest and darkest places of the world, and all may depend upon Wulf and Ursel forging a powerful weapon drawn from the heart of a dragon.

THE AMBER ARROW

FIRST IN THE NEW EPIC FANTASY SERIES, WULF'S SAGA. STUNNING COVER ART BY SPECTRUM AWARD WINNER DANIEL DOS SANTOS. Sixteen-year-old third son of a duke in an alternate Viking-like medieval America must face invasion by confederates of a colonial Roman empire based on vampiric blood slavery.

The Dragon of Shenandoah wasn't supposed to be calling. Wulf von Dunstig was so far down the succession list, he wasn't even spare to the heir! But calling it was. As the third son of the ruler of the Mark of Shenandoah, Wulf should not have inherited the ruler's complete bond with the giant dragon that lay under his land. He was into reading sagas and ranger lore, after all. Visions and rule were for his brother Otto. Yet when Wulf is secretly compelled to bond with the land-dragon, he finds himself thrust into a terrible new reality.

Darkness is rising.
Wulf's one chance to halt an invasion of evil is a weapon forged in the heart of a dragon and lost to the world centuries ago. Find it and hope for freedom remains. Lose it, and the dragons—along with the world they made—will fall into endless darkness. That weapon's name?

The Dragon Hammer.

Lexile Score: 680

Download the comprehensive Teacher’s Guide here.

ABEL DASHIAN'S WORLD DOESN'T NEED A HERO

Duisberg is one of thousands of planets plunged into darkness and chaos by the collapse of the galactic republic, but where other worlds have begun to rebuild a star-travelling culture, Duisberg remains in an uneasy balance between mud-brick civilization and bloodthirsty barbarism.

The people of Duisberg have a god: Zentrum, a supercomputer from the ancient past. Zentrum has decided avoid another collapse by preventing civilization from rising from where it is. And because even a supercomputer and the powerful religion which it founded cannot block all progress, Zentrum has another tool: every few centuries the barbarians sweep in from the desert, slaughtering the educated classes and cowing the peasants back into submission. These are the Blood Winds, and the Blood Winds are about to blow again.

This time, however, there's a difference: Abel Dashian, son of a military officer, has received into his mind the spirit of Raj Whitehall, the most successful general in the history of the planet Bellevue--and of Center, the supercomputer which enabled Raj to shatter his planet's barbarians and permit the return of civilization.

One hero can't stop the tide of barbarians unless he has his own culture supporting him. To save Duisberg, Abel must break the power of Zentrum.

With the help of Raj and Center, Abel Dashian must become . . . THE HERETIC!

Sequel to The Heretic, Book 10 in the nationally best‑selling General series.

FROM HERETIC TO SAVIOR

Duisberg is one of thousands of planets plunged into darkness and chaos by the collapse of the galactic republic, but where other worlds have begun to rebuild a star‑travelling culture, Duisberg remains in an uneasy balance between mud‑brick civilization and bloodthirsty barbarism.

The people of Duisberg have a god: Zentrum, a supercomputer from the ancient past. Zentrum has decided avoid another collapse by preventing civilization from rising from where it is. This is known as the Stasis. And because even a supercomputer and the powerful religion which it founded cannot block all progress, Zentrum has another tool: every few centuries the barbarians sweep in from the desert, slaughtering the educated classes and cowing the peasants back into submission. These are the Blood Winds, and the Blood Winds are about to blow again.

This time, however, there's a difference: Abel Dashian, son of a military officer, has received into his mind the spirit of Raj Whitehall, the most successful general in the history of the planet Bellevue—and of Center, the supercomputer which enabled Raj to shatter his planet's barbarians and permit the return of civilization.

One hero can't stop the tide of barbarians unless he has his own culture supporting him. To save Duisberg, Abel must conquer the very land of his origin and attempt to destroy the computer A.I. “god” who has doomed his world to an everlasting Dark Age. Abel is a heretic, but now he must go beyond and become—THE SAVIOR.

Listen to the authors discuss the book here on the Baen Free Radio Hour.

Formed from cold steel and superpowered computing brains, these gigantic tanks with the firepower of an entire army have been the decisive factors in interplanetary battle. But are humans worthy of the extraordinary instruments of war that they have created? Are the Worldbreakers the greatest protector of human liberty, or its worst threat? For, while these Worldbreakers very definitely have minds of their own, the question remains: within their iron and superluminal quantum breasts, does there lie a faithful heart? Stories of world breakers and world makers in the great tradition of Keith Laumer’s Bolos from David Weber, Larry Correia, Wen Spencer, and more!