Aldebaran

First cycle: Aldebaran The first colonists arrived on Aldebaran in 2079. They were to be the first wave of a large influx of pioneers, coming from an overcrowded Earth to live on this apparently very hospitable new world. But an unexpected problem put a stop to the process: The second ship, with thousands of people onboard, disappeared mysteriously in mid-flight. On Earth, scientists were forced to admit that they hadn’t quite mastered the incredibly complex phenomenon that allowed interstellar flights to overcome the speed-of-light barrier. So, all such travel was halted until the theoretical gaps could be filled and going to the stars could be done in complete safety. At the time, no one could have predicted that this interruption of flights would last a whole century. During that time, the first colonists on Aldebaran remained isolated on a wild planet and had to struggle to ensure their survival. As might be expected, they made mistakes, went to some unfortunate extremes and the society they built reflected those: a military dictatorship mixed with an authoritarian church. The story of the Aldebaran cycle covers five years in the life of young Kim Keller, who lives in a small coastal village. She’s only 13 at the beginning, and finds herself quite against her will drawn into a tragic series of events that will force her to grow up quickly so as not to be broken. Second cycle: Betelgeuse In 2184, a few years after interstellar flights resumed, mankind launched a second colonisation attempt, this time of a planet around the Betelgeuse star. The first ship, with over 3,000 people onboard, arrived without incident and remained in orbit while a team of technicians went down to the surface to prepare for the colonists’ arrival. Soon afterwards, all communication with Earth mysteriously ceased. It took six years for Earth finally to send a rescue mission to Betelgeuse in order to find out what had happened a small mission, with a reduced crew of only three: two astronauts and young Kim, now 24, who had just finished her biology studies on Earth. Once more, she would be swept into a series of events, often tragic and extraordinary, that would eventually change her life forever. After the six months she would spend on Betelgeuse, world of green canyons, she would never be the same person again.