Ace Books by David S. Goyer and Michael Cassutt
HEAVEN’S SHADOW
HEAVEN’S WAR
HEAVEN’S FALL
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
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Copyright © 2013 by Phantom Four Films and St. Croix Productions, Inc.
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eBook ISBN: 978-1-101-62454-8
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Goyer, David S.
Heaven’s fall / David S. Goyer & Michael Cassutt. — First edition.
pages cm
ISBN 978-0-441-02093-5 (Hardcover)
1. Human-alien encounters—Fiction. 2. Space flight—Fiction. I. Cassutt, Michael. II. Title.
PS3607.O925H425 2013
813'.6—dc23
2013006738
FIRST EDITION: August 2013
Cover art by James Paick.
Cover design by Lesley Worrell.
Interior illustration by Steve Karp.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the authors’ imaginations or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
To Ginjer Buchanan
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Map
Dramatis Personae
Prologue: THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 2040
WHIT
Day One: FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 2040
RACHEL
DALE
TAJ
AGGREGATE CARBON-143
RACHEL
YAHVI
TAJ
WHIT
YAHVI
RACHEL
DALE
YAHVI
RACHEL
DALE
Day Two: SATURDAY, APRIL 14, 2040
RACHEL
XAVIER
CARBON-143
RACHEL
ZEDS
RACHEL
Day Three: SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2040
CARBON-143
XAVIER
TAJ
Day Four: MONDAY, APRIL 16, 2040
RACHEL
DALE
RACHEL
WHIT
Day Five: TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 2040
XAVIER
YAHVI
Day Six: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 2040
CARBON-143
RACHEL
DALE
Day Seven: THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 2040
TAJ
CARBON-143
DALE
RACHEL
SANJAY
Day Eight: FRIDAY, APRIL 20, 2040
XAVIER
WHIT
Day Nine: SATURDAY, APRIL 21, 2040
DALE
YAHVI
CARBON-143
Day Ten: SUNDAY, APRIL 22, 2040
RACHEL
SANJAY
DALE
ZEDS
Day Eleven: MONDAY, APRIL 23, 2040
WHIT
RACHEL
DALE
CARBON-143
XAVIER
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Dramatis Personae
The Crew of Adventure
RACHEL STEWART-RADHAKRISHNAN, commander
PAV RADHAKRISHNAN-STEWART, pilot
ZDS (“ZEDS”), a Sentry
YAHVI STEWART-RADHAKRISHNAN, passenger
XAVIER TOUTANT, passenger
SANJAY BHAT, flight engineer
In Bangalore
TEA NOWINSKI RADHAKRISHNAN, former astronaut
TAJ RADHAKRISHNAN, former vyomanaut
WING COMMANDER KAUSHAL, commander, Yelahanka Air Base
MRS. MELANI REMILLA, director, Bangalore ISRO
SURESH KATEEL, Indian politician
COLIN EDGELY, leader of the Kettering Group
CHIEF WARRANT OFFICER SINGH, leader of the security team
WARRANT OFFICER PANDYA, security team
AIRCRAFTSMAN ROI, security team
EDGAR CHANG, media representative
KALYAN BHAT, bereaved relative
ARUNJEE LIN, media representative
URVASHI MURALY, media representative
SURINA, nursing assistant
ISHAT, crematorium worker
On Keanu
HARLEY DRAKE, former astronaut
SASHA BLAINE, former astronomer
JAIDEV MAHABALA, engineer
VARIOUS YAVAKI
NICK BARTON-MENON
ROOK
ELLEN WALKER-SHANTI
DULARI SMITH
MAREN HOUTMAN, art sector
JORDANA SWALE, agro sector
ZHAO BUOMING, former spy
MAKALI PILLAY, exobiologist
DALE SCOTT
At Site A
REIVER AGGREGATE CARBON-143/A72, combat and assembly formation
WHIT MURRAY, junior engineer
TRANSFORMATIONAL HUMAN EVOLUTIONARIES
COUNSELOR KATE
COUNSELOR MARGOT
COUNSELOR HANS
COUNSELOR NIGEL
COUNSELOR CORY
COUNSELOR IVETTA
RANDALL DEHM, engineer
JAMES DE LA VEGA, program manager
Pilots
STEVE LIU and JO ZHANG
BENVIDES and QUENTIN