Synopsis: From the flaps of the Bantam first edition: "The center of our galaxy is magnificent, wondrous - and utterly deadly. Located there is an enormous black hole, a pit into which a million stars have fallen. Now Gregory Benford returns us to the furious Galactic Center in a drama as compelling as his brilliantly successful Great Sky River. Against this haunting starscape, a small human band flees from an enemy it cannot hope to combat - enormously superior artificial minds embodied in great insectlike machines. This last remnant of humanity is led by Killeen, a man elevated to command in desperate times by his luck and daring. He manages to reach a new planet, where he encounters vast wonders - a planet-coring cosmic string, an organic lifeform the size of an entire world, and another group of humans led by a strange messianic ruler - and he faces even greater dangers from the most awesome beings the band has yet to confront. Their battle for survival reaches overwhelming dimensions. But they will gain and unexpected ally. And they will figure in the new order of life developing in the Galactic Center."