The Spaceman and his cat

In the 23rd century, the Earth was struck by an asteroid, which , together with the resulting man-made and natural disasters, destroyed most of human life , rendering it uninhabitable. The most technologically advanced human beings escaped to nearby planetary colonies and thence further afield in the quest for survival. Meanwhile the Earth returned to a primeval state and over time, one race emerged as the predominant power - the Narbilo - who dominated and enslaved the homo sapiens human beings. This is the setting as the novel begins on Earth4, a distant colony, in the 39th century, where the developing situation on the Earth is raising concerns that the Narbilo are becoming a threat to Earth4 and the other new colonies that have formed a Federation. Marc lives on Earth4 but is one of a very few survivors of the original Earth. He was born in the 21st century, died and was preserved cryogenically before being brought back to life and reconfigured as an "EH1". He is thus unlike the majority of the inhabitants of Earth4 and can exist on the Earth. Because of this he is selected, along with 35 other EH1s, and his feline companion, IDA, who has particular powers, for a mission to re-establish order on the Earth, supporting the enslaved majority of humans to overcome the oppressive regime of the Narbilo. This is a science fiction novel where the action takes place on an Earth that has slowly regenerated itself from almost total annihilation but where human development has taken a wrong turn. The novel contrasts the human qualities of justice, good, evil, compassion and love with the Narbilo's creed of dominance by fear and oppression. In contrast, Marc is unable to feel human emotions ; he is programmed to carry out his mission to achieve a specific objective, until, that is, he meets a family and little girl called Polly. This is a novel that will stimulate the inquisitive reader. There are historical and literary references to ancient Greek and Roman figures, 20th century history and English literature from Shakespeare to Byron and Macaulay. The novel also examines the human qualities of the "sapiens" on the Earth with those of the Narbilo and those of the inhabitants of "Earth4" in the 39th century.