Mistress of Molecules

Libra Calomel Valois has never seen a tree, let alone a forest. She lives on the planet Precursor, where anything that grows is poisonous to humans. The planet is, however, rich with heavy-metal molecules which are mined by huge industrial chemical plants, plants that pollute the air and shorten the lifespan of the populace. The planet, like most human planets, is controlled by these powerful corporations who use the militant churches to anesthetize and control the populations.

Libra has a hidden fully-equipped chemical lab, built by her father before he was taken away and killed by the Church of the Living Entropy for the crime of possessing forbidden chemicals. Now she continues her father’s work as she fights for liberty using her extraordinary powers of chemical synthesis to terrorize those in power.

Far away across the galaxy, Andre Sucher is raised in isolation, indoctrinated from birth by the rigid, misogynist church of Yahweh’s Tender Touch. At puberty he is sent to Seminary to become a fighting minister. The abuse is so great, that Andre uses his incredible intelligence to escape and stow aboard a Zgaarid spaceship. Tolerated by the Zgaarid crew, Andrew learns that this armadillo-like people, who control all space travel through their Quilt technology, has long ago lost their ability to innovate, living only off the vast accumulated wisdom of their Ancestors.

When Andre’s quick thinking saves the Zgaarid spaceship and crew, he’s honored, transformed into a Zgaarid ancestor, and implanted with hidden technology and access to all Ancestor wisdom.

Andre is assigned to solve the problem of chemical terrorism on Precursor. He meets Libra. She uses him to spy on the government’s camp. Andre finds himself overcoming his fear and loathing of women. Against all odds, Andre and Libra fall in love. So when Andre discovers that Libra is that chemical terrorist he’s been assigned to find, he risks his life to help Libra and her boss, Jules, escape into the undeveloped wilds of Precursor, but with no human-edible food.

Andre convinces Libra that she need not destroy society through terrorism. Instead, she could undermine the power structure by genetically engineering the native species to produce human-edible food. Pursued by the Precursor ministers (police) and starving day by day, Libra races to solve the food problem. Just as she succeeds, the ministers capture her and force her to promise to leave the planet.

Libra, Andre and Jules create a plan for seeding Precursor with Libra's self-propagating version of the new organism. A chain reaction begins, so in a few years, Precursor will be able to feed itself. Even though Libra will be long gone, the chemical-factory economy will lose its iron grip on the populace. In the meantime, however, Libra and Andre, now outlaws, will have to find another home—another planet to free. Gemariah will be their next stop.