Encounters

by Rusty Williamson

"Emotionally compelling...action-packed...intense" Kirkus ReviewsThe Spiral Slayer Book One-ENCOUNTERSAn advanced alien race called the Loud make first contact with the humans of Amular, a planet that lies at the edge of the Great Coma Wall of galaxies. The social impact plus the scientific and political upheaval, is only exceeded by the gift the Loud have brought—one humans have always dreamed of. However, it is a two-edged sword and one they may not survive.Time redefined, scientists obsolete...Then, a shocking discovery is since the dawn of time, a force has been working its way across the observable universe and is now upon them. As the mind-boggling truth is uncovered, it becomes clear that it’s an ancient alien who intends to destroy them on their way to a far more devastating and unfathomable objective.An unstoppable black hole coming at the speed of light...Neither the Loud nor the humans can hope to stop the approaching blight. There is no negotiating, no surrender and nowhere to run. A hopeless battle must be fought and somehow survived.About THE SPIRAL SLAYERS SERIESA science fiction odyssey...The cycle of big bang, expansion, big freeze, death and then it starts all over again. Universe after universe, a cycle that has endured for time without end. But now something is going wrong—an increasing number of universes are ending prematurely, unable to fulfill their grand and mysterious destiny, and this is causing the great endless cycle to become unstable.Existence itself is threatened...An advanced species observes their own premature cosmic ending, realizes this is causing the cycle of universes to decay and finds a way to send a warning into the future. Eventually, in another universe, another highly developed civilization finds that warning. In an effort to save existence itself, a way is found to send a hasty and desperate fix beyond their own cosmic ending, through the succeeding big bang and into the next universe...our universe.An exponential step beyond anything before it...In ships powered by black holes, an immortal species as old as time itself is pursued between galactic super clusters across the known universe. Forged in the fires of the early universe, their scientific journey is complete they know everything including the answer to the ultimate enigma...why we and the universe exist.

412 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2013

About the author

Ronald (Rusty) Williamson lives in San Diego CA with his wife Denise and their two dogs. The two just celebrated their thirty-ninth wedding anniversary. Both have been retired since 2002. They have two children. Besides writing science fiction, he owns and operates a 3D animation studio, and at a layman's level, has been a fan of quantum physics (Super-strings and LQG) and cosmology since 1980. His other hobbies are archeology, hiking, biking, RC airplanes and playing guitar. Almost every Friday, Saturday and Sunday you can find him and his wife dancing to a live band at some San Diego night club. Before retiring in 2002, he worked as a computer programmer and he and his wife flipped houses in their spare time. In the mid-eighties, he published technical articles for Computerworld. Between 1983 and 1992 he explored the Anza Borrego desert and acted as a guide for 4x4 caravans through the region. He served in the US Army in Vietnam in 1970