The Rosetta Codex

the long version

"Cale Alexandros was five years old when his family's starship was attacked en route to Morningstar, the lone outpost of civilization on a savage planet. Cale crash-landed in the wilds, and was picked from the wreckage by brutish nomads. For years, he was forced to endure life as a slave, until a kind trader finally freed him. But Cale never forgot what he had seen in the desert wastes -- or the temple that held a book with pages made of a strange metal, and writings he could not identify. When he finally reaches Morningstar, Cale realizes the importance of his discovery. For the book is a key to understanding an alien language. But it also holds a secret that some people want to learn--and a revelation that some will do anything to control"--Page 4 of cover.