Peter Ford Wingard

Fractured Into Being Peter Ford Wingard

The Drake, an interstellar vessel, is launched by NATO early in the 22nd century to colonize Kepler 10. Dr. Fran Arway, one of Earth's leading scientists, is on the mission for a chance to see what the scientific future holds after a millennia of sleep. From the beginning, Arway resented the military's involvement in the project. But unexpected things happened during their hibernation. On waking, the captain of the Drake learns that NATO and China are at war and the Chinese may be lying in wait for them at Kepler 10. In order to avoid being blindsided, the captain asks Lt. Col. Henry Banks, the commander of the Marine Expeditionary Force on the Drake, to scout ahead in the Draconian Measures. Banks who had joined the Drake to escape his past life accepts the captain's mission without hesitation. The problem is, the Draconian Measures is a small interplanetary craft not designed for relativistic speeds. Without Arway's technical skills in jury-rigging his ship with a deflector and a more powerful radar, Banks realizes his mission is hopeless. A bit of space dust at the Drake's current velocity has enough kinetic energy to destroy an armored tank. Arway reluctantly agrees to join the mission. As the two deal with each other and their mission, an unknown and far deadlier evil is watching them and waiting its turn.