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Summary and review of the prologue: In a high-tech world on the brink of collapse, people are starving and there's nothing Professor Daemon can do about it. From the onset, the reader is thrust into his shoes, experiencing his guilt and helplessness. His daughter Lydia has given up, but Daemon persists in pursuit of overcoming the Neo-Hominums, aka artificially intelligent machines.
He sacrifices himself to save everyone, passing the mantle of leader to the hesitant and cynical Lydia. However, before he can complete his mission, Syntek machines arrive and start tearing innocent civilians apart. Daemon manages to push an iconic button, sending a starship full of humans away from the Syntek and onward to safety (well, hopefully).
The author left a lot of questions open, which is perfect for a prologue! The Syntek are described well, but not in overbearing detail, so that the reader can picture the spidery-sentient beings with ease. In true "kill your darlings" fashion, the author also offs Daemon, though it's more implied.
In the next chapter, two new characters are introduced, Accel and Decel (aren't those names very sci-fi like?), and their easy banter is enough to propel the reader from the horror of the Syntek slaughter from the chapter before.
Accel and Decel are twins on the hunt for a Battle Syntek, and they stumble upon its rusted husk after it shoots at them. Accel bests the machine, and is subsequently chastised by his Commander for wasting resources in his incorrect use of the Plasma Utility Rifle.
Earth has supposedly been claimed by the Syntek, and factions like the Alpha-Theta are training to battle the bots. Later in the chapter, Decel is revealed to be a machine, creating an interesting dynamic between him and Accel, who only wishes to return to Earth and kill off all the machines.
Given the build of the story and the mystery surrounding each character, this book is a must-read.
