Collision Course — Michelle Diener

A step into the unknown . . .

Rose is looking forward to meeting the Fisone as part of the United Council's outreach mission. Since the Tecran were defeated, and the full scope of their crimes were uncovered, the UC has wanted to find the Tecran's victims and extend the hand of friendship. The fact that Rose is close to having her baby is just another element to the adventure of finding the Fisone's planet and seeing if they could be potential allies.

An explorer's dream . . .

Dav Jallan has been captain of the Barrist for a few years, but this is the first time he's headed for a planet inhabited by advanced sentients. The Fisone exist -- that is indisputable -- and every part of this mission is why he became an explorer in the first place. The goal is to find them, form alliances, and make friends. The fact that he's about to become a new father simply adds to his sense of excitement.

A collision course with reality . . .

When Sazo's Class 5 and the Barrist enter the Fisone's airspace, what they find is far from the uncomplicated meeting they had envisioned. The Fisone are divided, carrying a grudge, and are sure the Grih are no different from the Tecran they encountered the year before. When they take Rose as a hostage, both Dav and Sazo focus everything they have on finding her, and as the Fisone's actions create more and more danger, ideas of alliances, friendship, and cooperation become less and less important.

The only comfort both Dav and Sazo have to draw from is that Rose has been taken by others before, underestimated before, and her abductors have lived to regret it.

They are counting on history repeating itself.