Judgment at Proteus
by Timothy Zahn
The Quadrail train connects our galaxy, and takes secret warriors Frank Compton, from Earth, and lovely Bayta, to the horse-like alien Fillies' Proteus Station. The Mohdri, a coral group intelligence, controls minds after a scratch. With the rise of the vicious civilization-consuming Shonkla’raa, is he still their enemy, an ally, or a friend?