A young space race. . . a dangerous weapon capable of wiping out whole populations. . . a nervous breakdown, and a baby. Welcome to the world of the Shatong, where first contact could be their last! It's a matter of survival against seemingly insurmountable odds. Who wins? Who loses? And at what cost?! Read a couple short exerpts from the book: "The Gronox HAD been here, but for some reason hadn't wiped out the colony. She turned tail and raced back to her pod, ordering all other rescue pods to leave the planet surface immediately! . . . Flanesh briefly flushed as her hero addressed her. "My story is similar to Tishona's, but my colony got wiped out. I was so filled with shock and anger that my commander claims I took out five of their fighters in a blind rage!" . . . Marshan paced a moment, "We Shatong believe in the importance of life! We are descendants of the Purists, Toshang! The Purists refused to allow our race to become like the Gronox!" "Like the Gronox?" Toshang repeated, crossing his arms over his chest as he better positioned himself to listen."