Tier Zero Vol. I of the Knolan Cycle (ePub)

They're already here, and no one knows about it...yet.

Two bedrock assumptions underpin most science fiction tales of first contact between Earth and a hypothetical alien race. The first is that we will necessarily know when it happens and the second is that alien motives will likely be malevolent. In Tier Zero, Vol. I of The Knolan Cycle, first contact occurred over thirty years ago and no one on Earth...not even SETI...has a clue it has happened.

Martin Tellus is a graduate student at UCLA. With a past riddled by unanswered questions and a lifelong recurring dream he can't explain, Marty faces an equally fuzzy future. But Marty's dreams are both a portent of a transformation to come. The transformation arrives in the form of a chance meeting with Lysia in philosophy class. Their connection is instantaneous.

A seductive Asian woman with an untraceable accent, Lysia sticks to Marty's thoughts. During a casual conversation after their next class, Lysia offers to teach Marty "eastern" philosophy. But her teachings open a mind-bridge between them, accompanied by an intense physical connection. And Marty's progress doesn't end with the connection he and Lysia share. As her teachings progress, he discovers new powers, at once exhilarating and disquieting. Not for the first time, he wonders, who is Lysia really?

Marty's questions have answers, but Lysia knows, she isn't telling. Yet. The truth is she's a Seeker and Waykeeper of Knola, in our common galaxy. She's been waiting for Marty's awakening, to be on hand to mentor him in the Way. As Marty's powers grow with Lysia's teachings, she realizes he's unique in ways not even the Oracle, to whom Lysia answers foresaw.

Lysia finds Marty's growth in the Way at once inspiring and unnerving. Sharing her concerns with her superiors back on Knola, she precipitates a fateful decision that will change Marty's life and alter the history of both Earth and the Knolan Concordant. Tier Zero begins Marty's perilous journey to a destiny beyond his-or anyone's-imaginings.

Tier Zero, Volume I of The Knolan Cycle was published in November 2019. Eryinath-5, Volume II in the series is due out from PhoenixPhyre Publishing in 2021.