As the autistic head of the Carpathia’s Xeno-Liaison department, Xandri has become an expert in peaceful first contacts and convincing sapient species to join the Starsystems’ Alliance. The Anmerilli, however, are as xenophobic as they come… and they are developing a powerful weapon that caught both the attention of the Alliance and their bitter enemies. This time, Xandri’s mission is wrought with politics and the consequences of failure may well be genocide for the Anmerilli.

After six months away, a new mission awaits Xandri Corelel: the Hands and Voices—squid- and whale-like symbiotic aliens—want to join the Starsystems’ Alliance. They are masters of bio-engineering and are creating coral that can withstand vacuum, with a most stunning end goal: to grow entire spaceships out of living organisms. They want full membership, however, and in order for them to attend council meetings in person, Xandri must re-rig an entire spaceship to carry creatures the size of killer whales. Feasible, until an anti-aliens organization arrives, an army at their back.