Tomorrow, The Stars

Perplexed by an unearthly stranger's inexplicable appearances, Cosmologist Roger Shore is dismayed when the alien entity’s origin becomes obvious and he is unable to do other than respond to any knowledge of faster-than-light spacecraft development. Baffled when only his voice registers on a recording of the exchange, his superior in orbital Galileo Observatory reluctantly reveals the existence of a covert effort to develop FTL interstellar flight. Sponsored by the wealthy daughter of the revered Nobel Laureate who “fathered” nuclear fusion power systems, Program Demeter’s remote base in the asteroid belt leaves its working personnel vulnerable to hindrance and near-lethal interference from a malicious, dedicated alien entity. Shore and his associates eventually learn that the stakes surrounding a successful FTL venture are infinitely greater than imagined. Reaching the nearest stellar system, a supreme technological triumph in itself, is also considered not only a major maturation benchmark for any “juvenile” species, but apparently qualifies humanity for inclusion in a forum composed of myriad, diverse galactic intelligences.