This story began when Dignity Manfers, a professor of Ancient European History, couldn’t get his reference book from his locker at the University. The security lock on the cabinet again refused to recognize his handprint or iris. “Damn these machines,” he cried, “why can’t we be free of these infernal hunks of metal.” He was a specialist in the governments of ancient Euro History. He had diligently searched for information on how each political unit governed itself. The precious but partial copy of “Understanding the Philosophies of Governing in the European” was locked in a secure box. “Damn you, demon machine!” The soothing voice of the central administration electronic monitor encouraged him to be patient because his blood pressure was rising. A text message asked him to return to his reserved room to record his lecture. He would be fined if he did not appear soon. A second message came from the maintenance robot. His locker was open. Later in the day, when he had dealt with the psychological robot, the physiological robot, the maintenance robot, and his chair because he was late for his class, the idea of the Neo Utopian Society was born. The partial book Manfers had discovered contained an excerpt from one author’s writing about an island with a perfect society. It was agrarian, with common ownership of all things. No one was rich, and no one was poor. Half of each day was spent on study and intellectual debate, and the other working on the farms. What if he and some like-minded scholars gathered enough funds to claim one of the inhabitable planets being offered by the Galactic Consortium? They could be free of machines and live a life of intellect and equality. He suggested this to the Friends of the Tutor Age. After hours of argument, they agreed: The Neo Utopians Society was formed. Their idea took years to fulfill. Many families dropped out, but a core group kept on, and over 100 years later, they had the funds. An extremely suitable planet had become available. The GC exploration team called it Higgins World. Their exploration found it an ideal spot for a colony that didn’t want space travel or much contact with space traffic. The debris that hung suspended around the planet was evaluated. They ruled it was an annoyance but not a danger to spaceships, but satellites would be impossible. It had been in GC’s inventory for several years, and the settlement requirements were lowered to get it claimed. The Society advertised for colonists. They attracted a small but willing group. As was common, GC told them they would share the transport. The Humanos Verdaderos (the Authentic Humans) had a claim on an asteroid belt around the same star as Higgins. The GC Transport left Terran space with a full contingent of colonists, supplies, space miners, and a space station. Most were in stasis sleep for the voyage. The first offload was to be the Neo Utopians. The debris was heavier than reported. When the download was almost finished, a rock hit, destroying the attached Humanos’ space station and the transport’s propulsion unit. The emergency stranded both the crew and Humanos on the planet. At first, the groups worked together simply to survive. The Neo Utopians admitted the others must stay. They offered Humanos, one of the other land masses on the planet. They agreed and called it Refugio. The crew decided to move to the tropical region of the planet, anticipating a short vacation before rescue. They referred to themselves as Grounders, grounded against their will. They called their settlement Port. As the planet-born children matured, sexual activity among the adolescents revealed psychic abilities. The manifestation of these powers during sex caused changes that were sometimes fatal. No rescue comes, and the three diverse groups try to survive on a planet that is changing them. Can humankind survive on Higgins World