Jeena Garza escapes the horror of a POW camp only to crash-land on a desert planet far from where she'd intended to go. Alone, she adopts a tigra cub, a tiger-like carnivore native to Ararat, and names him Samson. It's the least she can do, given she killed his mother. Tigras have special talents. Unlike their Earth counterparts, they can stand erect, and do it comfortably. As Samson matures, he demonstrates an even more astonishing skill, one that places serious doubts on the accuracy of the planetary survey that opened Ararat for colonization. Then Jeena finds herself caught up in the last thing she wants-a war between a group of religious fanatics and a culture that is their diametric opposite--as Samson discovers the truth about his people, one that had been kept secret from the beginning. One that will change the galaxy forever.