Oasis

Beauregard Campbell is an Earther. Maia Hilliard is a Terran.

In the year 2557, Beauregard “Beau” Campbell is an Earther – born and raised on an Earth that has long been depleted of natural resources. In the Terran Republic, “Earthers” are second-class citizens – suitable only for the dirtiest, most dangerous jobs. Beau, a veteran of the Terran Republic’s Pacification Force and desperate to make a better life for himself, volunteers for the Colonial Development Corps – the organization tasked with providing grueling, low-paying manual labor for emerging colonies. Drawn by the promise of someday earning “Terran” status, Beau leaves Earth on the starship Goliath, bound for the new colony of Sanctuary II.

In stark contrast to Beau’s challenging life, Maia Hilliard is a child of privilege. Born a “Terran,” the upper class in human society, her parents are high-ranking members of the Terran Republic government. Raised on the colony of New Virginia, Maia lives a sheltered, pampered existence, enjoying a life reserved for those born on one of the many colony worlds of the Terran Republic. She has been raised to view Earthers with disdain – an attitude promoted and nurtured by her older brother. At the age of eighteen, this privileged young woman accompanies her family for a quick visit to Earth before proceeding aboard the luxury starship Goliath for the New Beijing Settlement and, eventually, a return to her affluent life on New Virginia.

However, when disaster befalls the Goliath, Beau and Maia find themselves suddenly thrown together in a fight for survival. Though each has deep-rooted prejudices against the other, they’re forced to depend on one another while adrift in space in an escape pod that seems determined to kill them. Not only must Maia trust Beau, but Beau must dig for his own inner strength and do the impossible – find a place in the vastness of space to land their small lifeboat. Nothing short of a miracle maroons the couple on a small planet – an alien world both idyllic and hostile, possessing deadlier secrets than they ever imagined. Can the Earther and the Terran overcome an inherent mistrust for one another, knowing that might destroy the unexpected feelings they’re gradually discovering for one another? And does that even matter when they unearth a secret that will impact the entire Republic – making it imperative that they escape their newfound paradise?