Thanks, Mike! Between my sister and me, I really thought it was perfect when I posted, but I just noticed I have "aliens" in one place and "Terrans" in another - also, Kennet's name creeps in at the end. Do you think I ought to name him? In any case, I have to fix those inconsistencies.

Anyway, I am very glad you like the first paragraph. Someone on the agent query board slammed it, saying Kiril was either dead, or he wasn't, so what was this nonsense? (Obviously, they didn't say it that harshly!). At that point, I decided I really couldn't please everyone, and wasn't going to try. ;)