Michael Poole's <I>wormholes</I> constructed in the orbit of Jupiter had opened the galaxy to humankind. Then Poole tried looping a wormhole back on itself, tying a knot in space and ripping a hole in time. <P> <CENTER><B>It worked. Too well.</B></CENTER> <P> Poole was never seen again. Then from far in the future, from a time so distant that the stars themselves were dying embers, came an urgent SOS--and a promise. The universe was doomed, but humankind was not. Poole had stumbled upon an immense artifact, light-years across, fabricated from the very <I>string</I> of the cosmos. <P> <CENTER><B>The universe had a door. And it was open...</B></CENTER>