Warlord of Kor

A human survey team on the planet Hirlaj unearths the staggered memory of an ancient, slow-moving native who carries his species' history, revealing a priest-king who abruptly ended centuries of warfare and established a long peace. As an investigator deciphers these revelations, conflict grows among the human contingent: some favor settlement and exploitation that would imperil the natives, others seek protection or moral leadership, and one woman tries to save the aliens. Central to the plot is an ambiguous figure called Kor—evoked as legend, ruler, or possible extraterrestrial trap—whose forbidden directives hidden in the native's mind could either resurrect lost powers or threaten both species.