From their inception, humans followed a path that would ultimately lead to their destruction andthat of the planet they inhabited. To prevent such a catastrophe, a mysterious Force decided humansneeded to be replaced with a species more empathetic, an abstract-thinking species that valued all life.

But how to do that peacefully and without causing undue suffering? Could that guiding Force - naturalselection, superior alien, gods or goddesses - introduce a species that bred with humans and brought withit a new form of consciousness, heightened empathy, and unique powers? Could the destructive humangenes be diluted to insignificance? What would it be like for the first few generations of advancedindividuals to be surrounded by a sea of slow-witted but resourceful humans? How would they survivethe human penchant for fearing otherness and the relentless instinct to exterminate it?It began with the Voices, strange expressive Voices that humans mistakenly diagnosed asschizophrenia. Such eerie stirrings were actually the emerging consciousness of a superior species,confusing and disorienting to those in whose minds they arose, and misunderstood by the Homo sapienssurrounding them.

In time, the Voices were joined by astounding predictive abilities and even moreshocking powers. The end of humanity had begun.

The replacement of one species by another is nothing new. Homo sapiens interbred with andreplaced Homo neanderthals.

Human biologists eradicate dangerous pests by introducingmutations with desirable genetic traits and allowing the two to interbreed. The Stillness Serieschronicles how the same thing could happen with humans and lead to their replacement by anadvanced, empathetic species.

The Hunchback's Gift, Book IV in the series, follows descendants of the originaldisoriented individuals as they develop their extraordinary powers on the way to ultimatelyreplacing humans and becoming the dominant species on Earth. Thus goes humanity, gentle into that still night.

. .

. .