Lords of the Ice Moons: A Scientific Novel

Description

What happens with something becomes someone? In the aftermath of an asteroid impact, Earth’s power grid is damaged nearly beyond recovery. The survival of our world may well depend on energy sources collected from an abandoned undersea settlement beneath the icy surface of Enceladus. Earth-raised Colonel Carter Rhodes, in charge of Earth’s recovery efforts, calls upon Gwen Baré, a Venusian engineer, to regain control of the deserted moon outpost and collect fuel for Earth’s collapsing power grids. However, what Gwen discovers churning in Enceladus's subsurface waters brings her and Colonel Rhodes' straightforward plans to a crashing halt. Soon, Gwen finds herself in the middle of an interplanetary standoff. Win, and give the last humans on Earth a chance to survive. Lose, and risk the permanent dismantling of human society across the Solar System. Forced to take sides in this war for power, resources, and species survival, Gwen must make choices that not only affect her own life, but also force her to question what "life" itself might really mean. Will the promise of Enceladus energy be enough to salvage what is left of Earth‘s society? Are these humans worthy of salvation?. Front Matter ....Pages i-xviii Front Matter ....Pages 1-1 Gwen Baré (Michael Carroll)....Pages 3-8 Interval 1: Grandma Baré’s Diary (Michael Carroll)....Pages 9-10 Carter Rhodes-September 2229 (Michael Carroll)....Pages 11-12 Gwen (Michael Carroll)....Pages 13-17 Rhodes (Michael Carroll)....Pages 19-27 Interval 2: A Fairy Tale (Michael Carroll)....Pages 29-29 Gwen (Michael Carroll)....Pages 31-34 Chevalier (Michael Carroll)....Pages 35-38 Gwen–October 2229 (Michael Carroll)....Pages 39-45 Antonio Vincenzi (Michael Carroll)....Pages 47-51 Circles Within Circles (Michael Carroll)....Pages 53-59 Interval 3 -Tommy- The Recent Past: 2226 (Michael Carroll)....Pages 61-63 Staying in Touch (Michael Carroll)....Pages 65-67 Interval 4: Abandoning Enceladus, The Past: 2201 (Michael Carroll)....Pages 69-71 Sisters (Michael Carroll)....Pages 73-75 Offering (Michael Carroll)....Pages 77-79 Interval Five: Tommy (Michael Carroll)....Pages 81-82 Top of the Loop (Michael Carroll)....Pages 83-85 Planetary Yachting (Michael Carroll)....Pages 87-94 The Water and the Wattage (Michael Carroll)....Pages 95-97 Drop (Michael Carroll)....Pages 99-104 You Can’t Go Home Again (Michael Carroll)....Pages 105-109 Down the Rabbit Hole (Michael Carroll)....Pages 111-118 Gwen (Michael Carroll)....Pages 119-120 The Downside of Topside (Michael Carroll)....Pages 121-124 Cold Awakening (Michael Carroll)....Pages 125-126 The Hosts of Atlantis West (Michael Carroll)....Pages 127-131 In Trouble and Under Water (Michael Carroll)....Pages 133-136 Civilized Conversation (Michael Carroll)....Pages 137-140 Meetings (Michael Carroll)....Pages 141-145 A New Light (Michael Carroll)....Pages 147-152 Interference (Michael Carroll)....Pages 153-158 Final Approaches (Michael Carroll)....Pages 159-164 A Walk on the Sunny Side (Michael Carroll)....Pages 165-172 The Dark Side (Michael Carroll)....Pages 173-175 Goings and Comings (Michael Carroll)....Pages 177-180 An FTL on the Wall (Michael Carroll)....Pages 181-183 Long Distance (Michael Carroll)....Pages 185-187 Taina (Michael Carroll)....Pages 189-190 Homeward (Michael Carroll)....Pages 191-194 Front Matter ....Pages 195-195 The Science Behind the Story (Michael Carroll)....Pages 197-213