Midway through its ten-year mission of galactic exploration, Earthship Redemption is a powder keg of emotion.Nearly destroyed by the rash actions of one man, it limps along its assigned destinations entirely on the iron willof its captain and the stubbornness of its crew. One man is to blame for their precarious situation, and no on iswilling to forget it. That man is Redemption's Chief -- and only -- Astrogator, responsible for Jumping the shipacross the galactic arm, and eventually home. That man is Dr. Jonathon Martine, astromathematician, widowerand single parent. Martine's wife died in the accident that crippled Redemption, and his daughter Leesa had tobe surgically removed from her dead mother's womb. Now both are outcasts on their own ship. Martine mustcompute the Jump Equations, but is otherwise shunned. Leesa must attend school with children who tauntand tease her mercilessly.But Leesa Martine is a gifted child. She possesses unique qualities. It's those qualities that attract an alienrace. A race that has been waiting a long time for a particular event to lift them to the stars -- and unbeknownst to her father, Leesa's arrival on their planet is just such an event!