This is fascinating story filled with imagination and creativity. I encourage readers to check out Dark Knight by Jodie Becker for its thrilling action and passionate romance.
4 Hearts ~ Anita ~ The Romance Studio

Ms. Becker has a wonderful knack of writing futuristic romance and an imagination beyond compare. ... This is a book that I will recommend to all my friends.
4 Cups ~ Liadan ~ Coffee Romance

*Warning: This excerpt contains harsh language*

At five thirty sharp, four hundred men and women lined the loading dock, dressed in dark green army fatigues, a material created to reflect the environment around them. Adjusting the collar that sat snug against her neck, Knight glanced over at Boomer, a large Australian who looked more suited for a bodybuilding contest. His muscles bulged against the fabric in a form of protest.

“What'd you do? Order a size too small?”

Boomer glanced at her, his hazel eyes shuttering with embarrassment. Despite his large frame, he was often quite cordial, but everyone learned early not to push him. They didn't call him the ‘Raging Bull' for nothing. “I might've.”

Knight grinned. “You expecting to impress some colonial chicks?”

He grinned. “I might be.”

Laughing, she shook her head. Long stints in stasis had a habit of making men pussy orientated.

“General on deck,” Lieutenant Colonel Lee announced.

Standing to immediate attention, Knight followed Black's path from the top of the stairs and onto the floor. His hard gaze passed over the line of people. “As you folks know, we set course for Thorus five years ago to start the construction of a military base. What you don't know is that we've lost contact with the current personnel awaiting our arrival.

“Now, this might be nothing. But then again, it might not. I want everyone to suit up in your bio-suits and proceed with caution. Pulse rifles only and by standard. You know the drill. Hoo-ah?”

“Hoo-ah!” everyone repeated.

Holding out her forearm, Knight keyed a code in her wristband. Her suit expanded momentarily, taking in the command before tightening and forming a snug-fitting hood over her head. A shimmering, almost transparent shield dropped over her face. Boomer grimaced as the party dispersed to retrieve their gear. “I hate them bio-suits. Feel like I'm suffocating in it.”

Knight patted him on the back. “Come on, it's not that bad. It's all in your head.”

Grumbling, he turned and stalked off while she gathered her pulse rifle and ammo. Dropping several necessities into her pockets, she followed after the group and headed toward the hover tank.

“Get a move on! Move it, move it!” commanded Lieutenant Vaughn.

Falling into a seat beside her men, she glanced over at Ngyeun, one of the females in her unit. The private's eyes were wide and a fine sweat slicked her forehead. She was new to the company, so Knight could understand the young woman's apprehension. “Don't worry. It'll just be a standard sweep of the area.”

The rumble of the engine rose as the tank jerked into movement. Closing her eyes, she wondered what had happened to the previous military personnel that had arrived with the civilians. Her father's closest friend, General Morgan, had set up camp here. Over ten thousand people had been sent to populate Thorus twenty years ago. A small shiver ran up her spine at the thought that no one had responded to their beacon.

They arrived at the outpost ten minutes later. The cabin jerked slightly as it settled and the door slid open with a soft hiss. The tank pulled up at the entrance of a colony. Stepping out, she held her weapon upright and stared across the crudely developed town. Much like the old images of America in the late twentieth century, the houses were made of wood, brick and mortar. Strangely, a twenty-foot wall surrounded the whole town; a metal gate lay broken by the wayside of the entrance.

She glanced over at Vaughn. “What the hell is this?”

He shrugged. “Fuck if I know.” He turned to the company and waved them forward. “You know the drill. By the numbers. I want a sweep of the buildings and keep alert. No fucking around, and that means you Cooper. Hoo-ah?”

The loud mouth of the team drew up beside her and grimaced, his blue eyes narrowed, but otherwise, he remained complacent to the commander's demand. “Hoo-ah.”

The teams drew out into small units. Arms at the ready, Knight cast a cautious gaze across the dirt packed road and at the houses. Doors and windows lay open as though the owners were expecting guests, but the town remained eerily quiet.

As Vaughn moved out, Cooper dropped his rifle on his shoulder and cast a lazy perusal over the area. “I don't know what we're doing on this chicken hunt. This place looks dead to me.”

Knight shook her head, knowing his smart-ass talk often covered his apprehension. “Standard procedure, Coops.”

“Shit. I shoulda known this was just gonna be yet another Bumfuq.”

“This is hardly in the middle of nowhere, Coops. Look around you. Civilization,” she said on a grin.

“Civilize this.” He gave her the finger as his eyes glimmered with mirth.

“Come on, let's get a move on. The sooner we do this, the sooner we can get back.” Marching over to one home, she leaned against the frame, and peered inside before stepping in.

The room was a pale wash of lemon yellow. Soft lace curtains fluttered in the breeze and brushed against the furniture of the living room. A fine layer of dust had gathered on everything, indicating that the place had been unoccupied for some time.

Beside her, Coops tapped in a code against his wristband and a holographic scanner appeared. The blue line inspected the room then let out a beep, before a woman's voice sounded. “Bio scan. All clear. You may proceed.”

“Oh yeah, baby, I like to hear that,” he said with a leer.

Knight rolled her eyes and punched him on the shoulder. “Can you get your brain outta your pants for three seconds? Keep your mind on the game, all right?”

Coops shrugged, but fell silent.

Making a slow pass of the room, she approached the stairs and stared up at the landing. A loud crash of porcelain breaking echoed on the second floor and Knight waved Cooper over. Indicating for silence, she touched her ear and pointed up the stairs.

Coops nodded in understanding. They remained quiet, listening for another telltale sign of activity. When it didn't come, she mounted the steps, her gun at the ready as she slid up against the wall. Pausing at the landing, she peeked around the corner down the narrow hall to find a door half open.

Turning to Cooper, she pointed at herself, then made a clockwise motion of a three-quarter square. When he signaled the okay, she hurried down the hall until she stood at the threshold, before indicating for him to follow.

As he drew up behind her, another sound of pottery moving about within the room sent anticipation rolling through her. Was it a Colonist?

Gritting her teeth, she motioned for a charge on three. Counting off silently, they pushed into the room with a yell.

“Shit!” Cooper cried, as they took in the sight before them.

A rottweiler stood before them, his fangs showing in a form of defense. Behind the animal, the bloody remains of a family lay in the corner. A mother and a child, judging by their clothing and size.

The woman's arms were wrapped around the small child, her arms torn from skin to bone revealing rotting flesh and sinew. The features of the Jane Doe were mutilated, as though someone had taken a knife to her. Fury rode along Knight's skin and settled in her gut with fire. The dog hadn't done this.

Cooper gagged. “God damn.”

“Stay frosty,” Knight warned, eyeing the dog.

Dropping her gun slightly, she took a step forward but paused as the animal crouched on its forelegs, a growl emanating forth.

“Hey, boy,” she crooned, slowly reaching for her pocket. “You must be hungry.” Pulling out a strip of beef jerky, she held it out to him.

The rotti licked his lips, confusion reflecting in his large brown eyes, clearly torn between the prospect of food and protecting his deceased owner. Knight waved the jerky in encouragement. Finally the food won over, and the dog took it from her hand. Pulling another two strips from her pocket, she handed them to the animal as she patted him.

“You carry jerky with you?” Cooper asked, baffled.

Knight glanced up at him. “You never know when your short sweep might turn into all out war, ya know?”

Shrugging, he turned his attention back to the bodies. “What do you suppose did that?”

Standing, she eyed the blood that sprayed against the walls, leaving an off brown streak. “I don't know, but I can tell you it's not a disease.”

Clicking the intercom at her temple, she tapped into Vaughn's line. “Hey, Vaughn, looks like we found something. We've got two bodies up here and it doesn't look pretty.”

“I hear you, Knight,” came his response. “But I think we got bigger issues to worry about. I need you and Cooper down here now.”

Glancing over at Cooper, who shrugged at her questioning stare, she stood and exited the house. Hitting the street, she found her company standing some hundred meters up the road. Jogging up to them, she drew to a halt at the edge of the crowd.

“What's going on?” she asked Spanish.

“Diablo.”

Knight frowned at the fear reflected in the dark depths of his eyes. “What?”

When he merely shook his head and stepped back, she pushed through the condensed bodies until she stood at the front of the group. She gasped at what lay before her.

“Holy mother of Christ. What the fuck is that?”

Vaughn didn't bother looking at her. “You tell me.”

The body lay on its side and was an anthropomorphic about eight feet in height. The ebony skin shimmered in the early morning sun, revealing the contours of its muscles. Long clawed fingers stained with what looked like blood lay against a wound to the stomach. Curled slightly inward, the black bony spikes that protruded from the spine glinted ominously.

Her attention moved to its features and she drew in a harsh breath. The smooth cranium with two spiraling horns formed off in contours against its skull. Where the eyes should've been there was nothing but skin. A lipless mouth lay open to reveal jagged teeth.

“Well, this definitely rules out an epidemic. You think this thing killed off the Colonists?”

Vaughn shrugged. “Can't say, but looks like it was killed by a gut shot.”

“Let's bag it and take it back to base. We gotta find out what this thing is.”

Behind her the rotti whined and nudged the back of her leg.

Vaughn frowned at the newest addition to the unit. “Looks like you have a new friend.”

Knight scowled as the dog bumped against her leg a little harder before letting out a frustrated growl. Crouching, she patted its box head. “What's a matter, boy?”

Long shadows began to form across the buildings and she glanced up at the sky. The sun glared above, but was in the process of being eclipsed by a crimson moon.

“We better head back to base,” she said, her gut clenching with trepidation as though feeling something wasn't quite right.

Vaughn nodded in agreement. “Pack it up. We're heading back.”

As the men drew into line and moved toward the entrance, a wild screech reverberated through the air, sending a chill along her spine. The moon covered half the sun and everyone stood in the semi-darkness, looking for the source of the noise.

Under the red glow of the moon, the sun's glare flickered then disappeared and they were all washed in darkness. Panic, unlike anything she'd ever experienced, prickled along her body. Another shriek echoed through the air and fell into silence, leaving the hair on the back of her neck standing on end. What the hell was making that noise? If it was anything like the creature they'd found, it left her with a cold feeling in her gut.