Prologue

      Twisting, burning metal screamed at a pitch which challenged the death-yells of the passengers and crew members throughout the massive structure of the starliner as the great space vessel hurtled, out of control, towards the shifting grey mists that enshrouded the surface of the terror planet Alzarius.

      Those in areas of the ship where the meteors had damaged the hull insulation died burning, horrible deaths, their corpses dragged out into space to fall towards the planet in the starliner's wake.

      On the bridge, ashen-faced Commander Yakob Lorenzil ignored a severe gash in his left arm to view on the master monitor high on the wall before him the mists of Alzarius through which the starliner now cut a red, blazing path.

      Aware again of the intolerable heat, and of the pain his arm, Lorenzil clutched at his wound and let himself fall back into his chair.

      Sub-Commander Damyen Fenrik had taken the place of the dead Chief Pilot at the central flight console. Blinking the sweat from his eyes, he surveyed the instruments before him with giddy terror, the beat of his own heart pulsing achingly in his ears.

      'Impact imminent!' he cried.

      Lorenzil yelled, 'Ready yourselves!' and with his good hand secured the double clasp of his chair harness. He wondered if it would be strong enough to hold him. What would happen if - ?

      On the master monitor the treetops of an Alzarian forest were visible for one split instant and then the universe exploded inside Lorenzil's head.

      The starliner landed hot and heavy on the forest, tearing a huge, burning portion of it away from the surface of the planet.

      The noise - greater, he was sure, than any noise that had ever existed in the history of creation - blotted from Lorenzil's mind his thoughts of how many of his crew and passengers were dying in that instant.

      The blackness came and Lorenzil's last thoughts in life were that he was going to survive the crash after all.