<div>The 21st century was on the brink of nuclear confrontation when the 300 kilometer-long stone flashed out of nothingness and into Earth's orbit. NASA, NATO, and the UN sent explorers to the asteroid's surface...and discovered marvels and mysteries to drive researchers mad.<br><br>For the Stone was from space--but perhaps not <i>our </i>space; it came from the future--but perhaps not <i>our</i> future; and within the hollowed asteroid was Thistledown. The remains of a vanished civilization. A <i>human</i>--English, Russian, and Chinese-speaking--civilization. Seven vast chambers containing forests, lakes, rivers, hanging cities...<br><br>And museums describing the Death; the catastrophic war that was about to occur; the horror and the long winter that would follow. But while scientists and politicians bickered about how to use the information to stop the Death, the Stone yielded a secret that made even Earth's survival pale into insignificance.<br></div>