Professor Arton Daghdev has always wanted to study alien life in person. But when his political activism sees him exiled to the planet Kiln, condemned to work under an unfamiliar sky until he dies, his idealistic wish becomes a terrible reality.

Kiln boasts a ravenous, chaotic ecosystem. Its monstrous alien life means Arton will risk death on a daily basis - if the camp's oppressive regime doesn't kill him first. But, if he survives, Kiln's lost civilization holds a wondrous, terrible secret. It will redefine life and intelligence as he knows it - and might just set him free.