Chapter 1

The sunlight erupted from the day-star Yinna, striking down from behind a passing cloud, and the fox-man pulled his dark hood further down his muzzle. Maxan had been leaning against this wall for nearly an hour, watching the activity in the square, waiting for his mark to show himself among the crowds that gathered. He scanned the endless lines of potentially afflicted Leorans shuffling their feet toward their daily food ration. He reached in his pocket for the apple . . .

Meg turned off the engine and let her ship drift with the momentum of her last careful maneuvers. There was still the hum of the backup systems and life support, a small but insistent noise she could never escape - it was the background music of living in space, surrounded by metal, plastic and wiring that kept them all alive. Flipping off the lights on her interfaces, Meg stared out at the stars as her ship slowly turned on its lateral axis.

She could never find Earth i. . .

Meg turned off the engine and let her ship drift with the momentum of her last careful maneuvers. There was still the hum of the backup systems and life support, a small but insistent noise she could never escape - it was the background music of living in space, surrounded by metal, plastic and wiring that kept them all alive. Flipping off the lights on her interfaces, Meg stared out at the stars as her ship slowly turned on its lateral axis.

She could never find Earth i. . .