They were built at the dawn of the exile from Earth - the bioplanes - artificial continents floating in a great archipelago, created so humanity might survive out in space. For centuries they drifted away from each other. Isolated and scattered beyond reach, they were left to evolve as a myriad of faraway worlds. On Gemma, oldest of the bioplanes, a pilot, a legislator, and a soldier are touched by a mysterious power that connects all human life and promises to bridge the vast distances. Guided by the secretive cult that discovered it, the three explorers set out on a journey across the known worlds. But their quest arouses jealous governments and dark forces that covet their new source of power. Together they must overcome the conflicting currents of technology and spiritualism, state power and individualism, to open a new epoch for their people and bring them knowledge of the vita eternigy - the eternal energy of life.