PATRIOTS RISING: THE HIGH GROUND

WAR HAS CHANGED. SHE DIDN’T HESITATE.

When a Chinese hypersonic missile tears into a U.S. aircraft carrier, killing hundreds and crippling its air wing, Commander Rachel Hale is flown straight into the wreckage to replace a fallen aviator—and to fight a war that has already crossed every red line.

The Pacific is on the brink.
Carrier strike groups are under constant missile attack.
Tactical nuclear weapons have already been used.
And the U.S. Navy is running out of pilots.

Hale’s solution isn’t retreat.

It’s evolution.

As China presses its advantage through coercive missile strikes and carrier deployments, Hale integrates autonomous “loyal wingman” combat aircraft into the carrier air wing—AI-driven strike systems designed to absorb losses, extend reach, and keep human pilots alive. To the Navy’s traditionalists, it’s dangerous. To command, it’s unavoidable.

Over the next seventy-two hours, Hale leads the first true hybrid air war in history—manned fighters commanding autonomous strike packages deep inside one of the most heavily defended regions on Earth. Every sortie risks escalation. Every decision carries consequences measured in lives, not simulations.

China expected pain to force America to negotiate.

They were wrong.

Patriots Rising: The High Ground is a relentless modern technothriller of carrier aviation, artificial intelligence, and combat leadership—where innovation replaces hesitation, tradition collides with survival, and the opening shots of a long war are fired.