Stephen W. Bennett

A cool soccer story for kids of all ages. A story that encourages integrity and sportsmanship in all kids.

Controller Trilogy, Book 1. Once the mutation was recognized, nations raced to identify citizens that carried active copies of the two gene versions, spurring research to insert the genes in more of their populations. One in 10 million has either the aggressive or defensive gene version. Compeller or Immune. Compellers insert thoughts in the minds of Susceptibles if within 75 feet. Those people act on those as if they were theirs, and will do what they are commanded to do. Like soldiers and law officers, some Compellers defend their government leaders, others attack leaders of hostile governments. Immunes are not controllable, and sense thoughts sent to anyone nearby. They are the defenders of a nation's leaders and seek out the foes of their government.Sheldon Stiles is a powerful Controller, the first discovered, a man with two copies of the compel gene, and he's a psychopath. He can make anyone do anything, from robbery, murder, or suicide, and he wants money and power. One Immune stands in his way.Dan Grayson is the first double Immune, and he can sense Compeller thought transmissions and knows who sent them and precisely where they are. He's part of an agency defending US leaders from mind control, but Stiles is out to kill him, his family, and friends. It's personal and deadly.Amid their personal conflict, technology suddenly tips the scale from short-range mental warfare, with the development of amplifiers and transmitters. These allow mass Mind Control of populations of entire cities. Stiles steals the technology, and Grayson is out to stop him. No nation is safe if leaders can be forced to launch nuclear missiles, or armies of their citizen puppets riot, attacking the police and military, who then also join the chaos. The battle has gone global.Free will belongs to those that can take yours from you.

Koban Book 7: When Empires CollideThe end of the main series: Under threat of destruction or servitude to the Empire, facing the fleets of the Ragnar, Finth, and Thack Delos, and the larger force of the Thandol, Mirikami prepares the Federation for all-out war. The Planetary Union, allied with the Federation, receives a squadron of new technology Federation Scouts, equipped with gravity controlled weapons. They conduct a preemptive strike on a Thandol base. The Emperor blames it on the Federation, unaware of the PU's existence, and orders simultaneous attacks.Mirikami sends teams of Federation Scouts to the Security forces, to subvert them. They carry diplomat-soldiers, with tough messages. The messages are not well received, and the Kobani must improvise, in their typically hostile manner. Unexpectedly, a mystery silver alien, The Silha, demands a meeting with Mirikami and the Olt'kitapi. It seems there are restrictions for species once they achieve advanced gravity control. The Kobani are told of limits they must obey, or else. To a god-like elevated species, survival of primitives is not their concern, so long as they don't use gravity technology in forbidden ways. After Security force fleets attack Federation and PU worlds, Mirikami leads a combined fleet against the Thandol Capitol world. He uses a new tactic that bypasses the weapons limits of The Silha. Vastly outnumbered, he faces the Thandol fleet with a great defense. Book 1 - KobanBook 2 - The Mark of KobanBook 3 - Rise of the KobaniBook 4 - Shattered WorldsBook 5 - A Federation Forged in Fire Book 6 - Conflict and Empire

This book can be read as a standalone novel because how the Kobani human variant came to exist is explained on one page. A prologue then propels you into this action filled, often funny Sci-Fi Cowboy in Space story. For over a hundred years Chisholm, a Rim World colony, has produced beef for most of Human Space, raising vast herds of a breed of giant longhorns. Things are changing, as land reform is demanded by small ranchers and farmers, placing restrictions on the existing open range policy. The wealthy large ranchers will stop this by any means, to preserve their profits. Passions are high and the opposing sides have turned violent and deadly.Ethan, a gene-modified Kobani, travels to Chisholm with his sassy sister, Kit, seeking a high-risk employment opportunity in the growing Range War, where raids and murders have wiped out entire families. Gunmen and killers are in demand by both sides, with premiums paid for greater lethality. Using their direct contact telepathic ability, Ethan and his unusual sister Kit, chose a side. They'll face a hundred hired guns, the outcome deciding who will control the future of Chisholm. Powerful men are determined to block reforms by driving off or killing those opposed to the status quo, and adamant reformers will meet violence with violence. Hired by one side in the conflict, an unexpected betrayal strikes down Ethan, and he vanishes. Kit goes on a rampage, terrorizing anyone with knowledge, to discover what happened to him, and mangled bodies accumulate as she searches for her brother. Knowing telepathically exactly what evil an individual has committed isn't admissible in courts there, or heeded by corrupt sheriffs. However, possessing the truth is ample motivation for ignoring the law to Kit, and she summons help. In a final bloody confrontation, with deaths on both sides, a solution that only those from Kobani could produce is achieved.

This is Book 5 of the highly rated Koban Series. When the enemy discovers their hidden home, Mirikami is forced to lead 117 Kobani ships in a desperate attack against 3,000 Krall ships and uncounted warriors. Armed with a 22,000-year-old computer virus, and sheer courage, they must disable every enemy ship and weapon. The last time this tactic was tried against them, the Krall eradicated the entire Olt'kitapi civilization. That's just one foe the Kobani face. The PU president rejects diplomatic recognition of the new Galactic Federation, and diplomat Mirikami is ordered arrested for genetic crimes and for provoking Krall attacks on Hub worlds. To reveal the president's duplicity in a secret deal with the Krall leader, he accepts a life or death challenge fight with an old enemy, right on the capitol steps, with news cameras rolling. Then, proving the galaxy remains a dangerous place, the huge Thandol Empire, a former Olt'kitapi enemy, forcefully announces that its elephantine rulers intend to annex the Orion Spur. That happens to be where both the Kobani led Galactic Federation, and Human Space reside. Naturally, the Kobani decline the Empire's violently phrased demands, doing it in their typically harsh and forceful manner. In leading up to that confrontation, the Kobani learn the basis of the Empire's claim to Federation Space, and it predates the Krall conquests. The prior owners may have a claim. The Empire's initial punitive reaction to Kobani rejection reveals they have a pain causing nerve weapon, used for crowd control in the Empire. This mild sounding weapon proves to be devastating to those with organic superconducting nerves. Life on Koban could be wiped out by a riot control ship.Book 1 Koban, Book 2 Koban: The Mark of Koban, Book 3 Koban: Rise of the Kobani, Book 4 Koban: Shattered Worlds.

This is Book 4 of the popular and high rated Koban Series.The Kobani continue their offensives against the Krall, attacking production worlds, and destroy or steal ships from the Krall fleet, which the enemy needs to resupply their invasions. The Kobani create a multispecies settlement on Haven, a gentler habitable world near deadly Koban. They gain the trust and technological assistance of freed former Krall slave species, the Torki, Prada, and resurrected Raspani. Their ranks and Mind Tap learned skills are increased by spec ops recruits from Human Space. Mirikami engineers an assault on the Krall base world, K1, in cooperation with a skeptical human navy by sharing new technology, revealing Kobani physical capabilities, and providing intelligence on new Krall invasion plans. Despite knowing the Kobani use illegal gene mods, the navy high command decides to hit the Krall first, with the help of their secretive tough Kobani ally.After the attack, a mauled Krall fleet still heavily outnumbers the navy, and the damaged human fleet withdraws. A vengeful Krall warlord, the Kobani's old nemesis Telour, summons an ancient Olt'kitapi ship that can shatter an entire planet. He has a devious plan for remote strikes that will initiate delayed deaths on multiple human worlds, all before a ship imbued with morality can learn it's been duped. Telour wants the home world of humanity to see death approaching, one world at a time.Mirikami expected a strong Krall reaction, but not this extreme. He scrambles to head off inexorable destruction of multiple planets. Failing to save some worlds, he's the final hope for billions of people on others. The Kobani will need the strength and speed their genes provide, plus luck to save humanity. Book 1 Koban, Book 2 Koban: The Mark of Koban, Book 3 Koban: Rise of the Kobani

Four stories, derived from the same Universe as the Koban series. These are tales involving Koban life forms and the Kobani people. Reading the other books isn't required to understand and enjoy these stand-alone tales.Australian Krall: A fully gene enhanced petite Kobani woman finds herself trapped in total darkness, pursued by hundreds of slavering, semi-sentient, maniacally aggressive and hungry aliens. Take a walk on the dark side Bats of a Leather Flock Together: The wolfbat Flock Leader takes his colony to an unexplored Koban continent to set up a nest in virgin territory. The wily leader uses his cooperative experience with humans to try to forge similar alliances with other native creatures. Not everyone wants to play nice.Kobani Kiddie Cappers: How do Kobani parents cope with children that are born with the contact telepathy gene, and have eidetic memory? Adults that think teenagers act like they know everything never had an overconfident four-year old super child, with a ripper cub as his partner. Living to his teens is in doubt.The Smuggler and the Crime Lord: When you land your spaceship at a ruthless Crime Lord's city using false registry, it's hard to convince a platoon of armed thugs that you're only shopping, not smuggling without paying the boss his cut. If you happen to be Kobani, and you're buying everyone drinks in a spaceport bar, making threats and spoiling the fun can be fatal.

Already faster and more powerful than the last 17 species that they have destroyed or subjugated, the Krall have set their sights on humankind. After testing humans on their future home world of Koban and finding them worthy opponents, the Krall start a war of slow extermination with the rest of humanity. The war is intended to last generations as they apply their own version of "natural selection" to cull their weaker warriors in combat, purifying the Krall gene pool with finest warriors for breeding. Why? The Krall desire to rule the galaxy someday, from their future home world of Koban, where the impossibly fast and powerful animals have proven to be too fast and strong for them to match. Only through the attrition of war will the Krall perfect their bloodline to become the masters of Koban. When the Krall departed Koban to start their war with humanity, they destroyed the protections that kept their prisoners safe. They left the human test subjects to fall victim to high gravity, and the deadly predators. Big mistake. The bio scientist left behind enhance the human genome with Koban genes, forming the next generations of humans. They are becoming what the Krall sought to be. The fastest, most powerful species in the galaxy.The men and women trapped on Koban, locked in a struggle for their own survival for twenty years, return to the stars to help defend Human Space. The Krall have had their way with human worlds, killing when and where they wish.Outnumbered, the new Kobani will now take the war to the Krall.

We colonized over seven hundred planets in 200 years. Humankind enjoyed the benefits of unlimited expansion and the end of wars. We even disbanded our military.Then the Krall found us.The Krall have used thousands of years of combat to select the genes of the strongest and fastest warriors for breeding. They are a species determined to rule the galaxy, through death, destruction, and domination of every opponent.Ruthlessly, they tested captured humans on a savage planet called Koban. The choice faced was simple for the prisoners: Prove humans can produce fighters again, or be exterminated now.The aliens are only part of the captive's problem. Left to die, the captives must survive Koban's high gravity and superfast animals, with organic superconductor nerves. The huge tiger-like rippers are predators too fast even for armed Krall to face. The human solution, with the help of a ship full of captive bio scientists is genetic: If you can't beat them as you are, become more like a ripper.The Krall will discover more than one species can bypass natural selection.

The Kobani capture Krall ships and use them to return to Human Space. They seek expert training for their genetically enhanced young fighters, modern weapons, and new medical technology. There is a potential roadblock to such help, in the form of death penalty laws of the Planetary Union, prohibiting gene modifications of humans. These laws are a holdover from the Gene War, which nearly extinguished humanity. A perilous descent through a war torn planet's space defenses is the first step, while flying an enemy ship. After landing, a nearby Krall ship and its crew must be fought, as a watching hidden and suspicious Special Ops unit tries to decide if the Kobani should be trusted, or killed as collaborators. The Kobani, caught between a rock and a hard place, do what they were bred to do best. FIGHT Exploration at home reveals startling alien neighbors, and a habitable world next door. A remarkable genetic discovery found there will forever alter the Kobani. Having found allies, Captain Mirikami forges a bold and dangerous plan, to strike deep into the heart of Krall territory. A place the enemy is confident that puny humans can't reach, let alone attack. Simultaneous coordinated Kobani raids seriously damage Krall war manufacturing, freeing many slave workers, and buying time for humanity. However, the Krall possess a terrible ancient weapon that none expected. Retaliatory escalation of the war has been triggered, and if it doesn't go as the Krall want, entire planets and their populations will be shattered.