Over 500 years have passed since the destruction of our Solar system, and in spite of humanity’s expansion into space in search of answers, they have come up empty-handed. That is, until the discovery of three mysterious artifacts emerge, each bestowed upon one of the factions.

The Nexus bestows upon the Federation unparalleled access to information, granting them a crucial advantage in intelligence. The Empire wields the Oracle, a mysterious artifact purported to grant glimpses into the future. The Union possesses The Bastion, a colossal vessel capable of instantaneous travel across the cosmos.

During this time of exploration and advancement, we meet our heroes. Sera Varse of the Union leads a research team to investigate a strange signal and planet that seems to have appeared out of nowhere. Touma Kudo of the Federation accepts an investigative job that allies him with two hitmen in search of answers that will pit more than one corporation against each other. Gloria Morell of the Empire sees the Emperor as leading their people in the wrong direction, which she means to fix. Finally, Captain Montez will prove much more instrumental to the fate of the Core Systems than anyone would expect from this space pirate.

But when a fourth artifact is discovered that causes ships and planets to vanish, peace is threatened on a whole new level.

As tensions escalate and the specter of destruction looms, our heroes are thrust into a race against time to unravel the secrets of this newfound discovery. If they can’t find answers, worlds and lives are threatened to be destroyed in the same way Earth was all those years ago.

Paradox is the first in a series of novels in the universe of PlanetQuest, a transmedia cinematic universe. For fans of THE EXPANSE and DUNE. Written by Justin Sloan, who has written such best-sellers as SHADOW CORPS and on such videogames as GAME OF THRONES.