Seeker
Jack McDevitt
 The story is set approximately 10,000 years in the future, after civilization has expanded to inhabit countless worlds. Alex Benedict and his partner Chase Kolpath specialize in a new active type of space-archeology, involving the examination of abandoned bases and deserted space-craft in search of valuable items. Alex is approached by a mysterious woman who asks him to ascertain the value of a strange cup riddled with archaic symbols. They discover that the cup is a 9,000 year old relic from one of the first Faster-than-light vehicles built, the Seeker. This was a colony ship manned by a faction known as the "Margolians" who were fleeing the then-oppressive society of Earth in hopes of establishing a free world. Records indicate that they succeeded, as the Seeker made several voyages, but they kept the location of their colony world a secret and it remains unknown to the present day. With insight and some luck, Alex and Chase discover who brought this cup back. By retracing the route of these long-forgotten space explorers, they begin to get an idea of where the Seeker was found. With excitement high, they set off in hopes of finding the biggest discovery of the century, the colony of "Margolia". Thus begins an adventure which will take them to the brink of death and the ends of the universe.