An unpublished sci-fi novel by Meshakhad.
Centuries after a stellar disaster wipes out most of human civilization, the salvage ship Raven rescues a rogue archaeologist who has made the discovery of a lifetime - a working pre-disaster AI, and one who can lead them to the wreck of an advanced warship loaded with lost technology. Unfortunately, they soon run afoul of a power-hungry government scientist, and now their only chance to survive is to venture into deadly radiation-filled space and find the ship.
This story contains examples of:
- Badass Archaeologist: Professor Henry Fauntleroy.
- Badass Bookworm: Both Professor Fauntleroy and Colonel Parr.
- Berserk Button: Do not threaten the Revenant until you are certain that Gaela is offline.
- Cool Starship: The three main ships (Raven, Damocles, and Revenant) all qualify.
- Decoy Protagonist: Gabriel Stone, though he doesn't die
- Earth That Was: The Earth is uninhabitable due to radiation from Capella.
- Ethical Slut: Daniella Mason.
- Everyone Went to School Together: Fauntleroy and Parr were classmates (and rivals) at school.
- Evil Genius: Colonel Parr
- Faster-Than-Light Travel: The hyperspace variant.
- Heavy Worlder: Fauntleroy.
- The Hero's Journey: A textbook example.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Fauntleroy and Gaela
- Space Marine: Dmitri Borodin
- Took a Level in Badass: Much of the plot is Talia doing this
- Wrench Wench: Talia Stone
