The Forerunner Factor

Two Andre Norton Forerunner novels, Forerunner and Forerunner: The Second Venture, featuring young Forerunner/human hybrid Simsa, collected for the first time in one volume. A heroic young woman seeks her origins as she comes of age on worlds of peril and alien mystery. ForerunnerOn ancient port world planet Kuxortal, young Simsa grows up among garbage pickers who live upon the ancient ruins of a fallen galactic civilization–the Forerunners. But Simsa has always been different. Her skin is iridescent blue-black and she shares a telepathic bond with an alien pet, a bat-like zorsal, like no other. When Simsa’s mentor dies, she must scrape a poor existence from an unyielding planet. But then Thom, a star ranger, arrives from the heavens, and he leads Simsa on a path to the discovery of her origins that takes both through danger to the ultimate revelation. The truth may lie below in the ancient high tech Forerunner ruins where Simsa was first discovered as a infant, but these cavernous mazes are far from quiet and dead–and what Simsa discovers there will change her life, and perhaps galactic civilization itself, forever.Forerunner: The Second VentureSimsa has escaped the criminal guilds of Kuxortal only to find herself held prisoner by starfaring humans intent on discovering the secrets of the Forerunners contained within her. With the aid of her pet zorsal, Simsa escapes her captors and crash lands on a sandy world full of danger and mystery–another world touched by ancient Forerunner civilization. Now Simsa must escape death at alien hands while battling the spirit within her that seeks to possess her very being and transform her into something utterly inhuman. But though the ancient Forerunners may have been technologically advanced beyond comprehension, they have never reckoned with the courage and gritty determination of one young woman determined to keep her freedom and write her own destiny among the stars.About Andre Norton:“The Grand Dame of Science Fiction...”–Time“One of the all-time masters.”–Peter Straub“Andre Norton is a superb storyteller whose skill draws the reader completely into a fantastic other world...”–Chicago Tribune“Norton's renowned story-telling magic is present in abundance . . .”–Future Retrospective