Starcross
The year is 2186, and humanity has established colonies on the Moon, Mars, and some of the larger asteroids. Earth's skies are littered with space habitats, and the spaceways are bustling with activity. As always, energy is desperately needed to power this advanced civilization; one of the most important sources of energy is black quantum holes. In Starcross you are a black hole miner, searching the asteroid belt with your one-man ship. Finding and exploiting a single black hole can make a person rich. It's a lonely business, fraught with the known and unknown dangers of space. You have outfitted your ship, the M.C.S. STARCROSS, with the best equipment you can afford. You've put everything into this venture, and although you've tried it before, you somehow sense that this time it will be different.
Story
The year is 2186, and humanity has established colonies on the Moon, Mars, and some of the larger asteroids. Earth's skies are littered with space habitats, and the spaceways are bustling with activity. As always, energy is desperately needed to power this advanced civilization; one of the most important sources of energy is black quantum holes. In STARCROSS you are a black hole miner, searching the asteroid belt with your one-man ship. Finding and exploiting a single black hole can make a person rich. It's a lonely business, fraught with the known and unknown dangers of space. You have outfitted your ship, the M.C.S. STARCROSS, with the best equipment you can afford. You've put everything into this venture, and although you've tried it before, you somehow sense that this time it will be different. The ship's computer handles navigation and routine maintenance. You watch the sophisticated mass detector that ceaselessly scans the environment for unknown masses. To relieve the boredom of your long voyage, you flip through the compact cassette library, a compendium of human knowledge and culture. But the roar of the ship gradually lulls you into a deep sleep. As you sleep, you dream of the riches that would be yours if your search for a black quantum hole were successful. Little do you know that the alarm of your mass detector will soon pull you out of your dream - but not to find the long-sought black hole. Your search has taken an unexpected turn, as you are destined to meet up with a giant alien spaceship from the outskirts of the galaxy.