<b>A strong but flawed woman, an alien man, a compelling story, vividly told, and the beginning of an exciting new science fiction series.</b>Jenny Black Wolf, a civilian scientist and tracker, and Curran TaZarin, the <i>Defender's</i> Deniban First Officer, set out on what should have been a routine mission to Caldera to locate and rescue the passenger and crew of the military transport <i>Orion</i>.Caldera is a barely explored, volcanically active planet, located deep inside Alliance territory. Now the <i>Orion's</i> crew has disappeared into the Calderan wilderness, and there are Karghan marines on Caldera. They've torn the <i>Orion</i> apart looking for what they came for, didn't find it, and have started hunting the <i>Orion's</i> crew.As Jenny and Curran enter the Hell's Gate Lava Beds to begin their search, a deep but unintended psychic bond begins to form between them—a dangerous mind-link that neither of them wants. Now, the secrets each of them carry could destroy the mission. The secret the <i>Orion</i> is carrying could destroy worlds. <b>A unique and compelling story. Awesome world-building.</b>