Artifact Space
By Miles Cameron
26-7
The great ships are the backbone of the human trade empire that runs on the alien produced xenoglass. They are the elite, nine massive ships that haul the majority of trade goods from world to world on a circular path that eventually brings them to Trade Point to meet the starfish and then home to the orbital City, only to begin the cycle again. Nbaro has watched them from the orphanage for a long time, has studied the necessary texts, taken the VR simulations, and longed to be part of their crew. Now, when she’s threatened with being sold to unscrupulous men, she takes the leap and bribes her way about the Athens. It’s a life of constant challenges to prove she belongs in the crew, even though she knows that she cheated her way on board. But Nbaro is good at a great number of things, and the Athens is going to be glad to have her onboard when an unknown force begins targeting the great ships. As one after another is destroyed, the crew of the Athens begins to wonder when their time will come. In deadly game of cat and mouse, the crew must guide their ship through to Trade Point past marauder ships and other dangers.
