The Story — The Darwin Verdict

The orbital satellites which over a century ago made radio contact with sentient life across the stars have suddenly and inexplicably gone dark. Contact with Cerulea has been terminated, leaving mankind once again alone in the universe.

This mystery now threatens controversial plans to terraform a distant moon in order to chart a future for a dying earth. Aspiring young botanist Hans Dalton thinks he’s unlocked the key to the terraforming project and sets out on a mission to share his breakthrough. Things quickly go sideways when Consortium agents begin to target him for treason, a band of rebels start sending him love letters, and the first ever planet-wide election turns everything Hans thought he knew upside down.

Hans soon finds himself on a path to unravel a plot for humanity’s future much deeper and more sinister than he could have ever imagined, all while the fate of two worlds hangs in the balance.