Antares Dawn — Michael McCollum

When the supergiant star Antares exploded in 2512, the human colony on Alta found their pathway to the stars gone, isolating them from the rest of human space for more than a century.

When a powerful warship materializes in the system without warning, the commanders of the Altan Space Navy are alarmed. They dispatch one of Alta's most powerful ships to investigate, only to discover the unknown behemoth is battered and helmed by a dead crew.

This is disturbing news for the Altans as the defeated battleship would have easily defeated the whole of the Altan navy on it's own. And if that ship was able to stumble into the Altan system, so too could the force responsible for its destruction. Something must be done.