Invitations from Afar

Book excerpt: After fulfilling every objective of a top secret mission to Jupiters Ganymede and now only days from home, four NASA astronauts learn from their computer systems analyst in Houston through an unauthorized channel that a bomb may be on a rendezvous course with their ship, the Copernicus. Mission Specialist Jana Novacek, the youngest astronaut ever, who has been chosen for mysterious reasons, suggests breaking security, announcing their existence to everyone over the net, and asking for help. Someone might be willing to help who unknowingly is involved in the plot against them. Cocommander Fawzshen, Prince of Rhatania, further recommends revealing their amazing discovery. Commander Jackson Medwin thinks that Janas journal is ideal for that purpose. Jana is distressed and feels her personal journal is not suitable. Commander Medwin will do anything to save his crew, this mission, and their discovery, but he decides neither to take evasive actions nor break security until they have proof that something is on a collision course with their ship. He considers a deactivated meteoroid detection program uploaded to them from Houston as insufficient proof.