The Peregrine

The Nomads, an iterant race of traders are meeting at the planet Rendezvous for the Captains council between the captains of each clan/ship. Joachim, captain of The Peregrine has news. A mysterious and potentially dangerous race has left signs that need to be discovered. He proposed to take his ship for the job. Meanwhile Trevelan, an agent of the Coordination office is off to the frontier on the same mission.

Sean, a lonely Nomad whose wife has left him falls in love with a mysterious native named Ilaloa. It is agreed to allow him to take her along.

When The Peregrine docks at a space port Trevelan snoops around ostentatiously until Joachim orders him abducted as a precaution. He uses this as an opportunity to ally with The Nomads. They follow up leads until they get to the planet of the Alori a native race devoted to their love of nature and xenophobically fearful of technological society. They are held captive with the hope that they will assimilate. Instead the Nomads revolt, recapture their ship and head home. In the meantime Trevelan has fallen in love with and married a Nomad woman and decides to resign from his job and stay with the Nomads.