CONTENTS

AUTHOR’S NOTE. 3

PROLOGUE. 5

ONE: MARLENE. 6

TWO: NEMESIS. 14

THREE: MOTHER.. 23

FOUR: FATHER.. 27

FIVE: GIFT. 37

SIX: APPROACH.. 41

SEVEN: DESTRUCTION?. 48

EIGHT: AGENT. 55

NINE: ERYTHRO.. 61

TEN: PERSUASION. 69

ELEVEN: ORBIT. 74

TWELVE: ANGER.. 77

THIRTEEN: DOME. 84

FOURTEEN: FISHING.. 99

FIFTEEN: PLAGUE. 107

SIXTEEN: HYPERSPACE. 112

SEVENTEEN: SAFE?. 120

EIGHTEEN: SUPERLUMINAL. 126

NINETEEN: REMAINING.. 135

TWENTY: PROOF. 141

TWENTY-ONE: BRAINSCAN. 151

TWENTY-TWO: ASTEROID. 160

TWENTY-THREE: AIRFLIGHT. 163

TWENTY-FOUR: DETECTOR.. 173

TWENTY-FIVE: SURFACE. 180

TWENTY-SIX: PLANET. 190

TWENTY-SEVEN: LIFE. 197

TWENTY-EIGHT: TAKEOFF. 204

TWENTY-NINE: ENEMY. 212

THIRTY: TRANSITION. 219

THIRTY-ONE: NAME. 222

THIRTY-TWO: LOST. 233

THIRTY-THREE: MIND. 241

THIRTY-FOUR: CLOSE. 250

THIRTY-FIVE CONVERGING.. 259

THIRTY-SIX: MEETING.. 277

EPILOGUE. 299

ABOUT THE AUTHOR.. 300