Infinity Engine

Asher (War Factory) completes his Transformation series with this powerful work that transcends the borders of morality, existence, and spacetime itself. The rogue AI Penny Royal continues to be the guiding force of this story, which centers on Room 101, the enormous spacefaring war factory where Penny Royal was created and where the last volume’s climactic battle took place. Sverl, an alien who’s been converted to an AI by Penny Royal, gains control of Room 101 as others converge on it. Thorvald Spear, one of Penny Royal’s first victims, resumes his quest to find it, knowing that he is “the judgment the AI had created for itself.” Another AI, the Brockle, has decided that it must defend the human and AI Polity from Penny Royal, regardless of how many lives it costs. The final action moves to Panarchia, the planet where Thorvald died, which now orbits a black hole. Asher imagines incredible beings wielding vast alien technologies, devastating space battles, and mind-blowing science, but all ultimately hinges on Thorvald Spear and his very human choices. (Mar.)