ON Destrire, a far-flung planet at the edge of Humanity's Galactic empire, a sleepy little colony is slowly being forgotten by its imperial guardians. Life on the colony continues, as the human colonials and their new alien neighbors find ways to build a peaceful home for all. But trouble brews on the other side of the continent, thanks to a secret, centuries-old program to form a covert prison on Destrire. There, unknown by the colonists, the empire has established a dumping ground for political prisoners. Stripped of basic necessities, the prisoners have evolved into a barbaric frontier force eager for ways to improve their own lot.
The prisoners begin a brutal series of raids on the colony, and life will never be the same. Caught in the conflict are one church-going human family and their alien friend. In a desperate attempt to reunite with her family. one woman must turn to her alien friend for help.
Equally torn by the recent exposure to the horrors that humanity willingly unleashes upon its own, the aliens must now make a choice. Will this intergalactic culture clash strain existing relationships and loyalties to the breaking point? Will the brutality of the prisoners' culture's attacks finally crush the faith and culture of the sparsely populated colony? In the end, can the family survive even in victory?
The prisoners begin a brutal series of raids on the colony, and life will never be the same. Caught in the conflict are one church-going human family and their alien friend. In a desperate attempt to reunite with her family. one woman must turn to her alien friend for help.
Equally torn by the recent exposure to the horrors that humanity willingly unleashes upon its own, the aliens must now make a choice. Will this intergalactic culture clash strain existing relationships and loyalties to the breaking point? Will the brutality of the prisoners' culture's attacks finally crush the faith and culture of the sparsely populated colony? In the end, can the family survive even in victory?
