Fire in the Sky

Shadith - For centuries she had been entrapped in the Diadem - an enigmatic artifact of a long lost alien civilization - and had been a virtual slave to its wearer. With the destruction of the Diadem she had been freed - and had become a human woman once more. But her centuries-long association with this magical relic has left her changed - gifted with her own kinds of magic - among them an empathic musical skill which transcends language, enabling Shadith to communicate with alien species who would otherwise be unreachable. So when recruiting begins for a diplomatic mission to Beluchad, a newly rediscovered planet where the two native species use music as a means of communication, Shadith is the obvious choice. But Beluchad is a world on the brink of war - being torn apart by two ruthless imperalistic races vying for control of mineral rights. Will Shadith's magical powers of communication be enough to make peace on a planet where two alien races fight to exploit valuable natural resources, while denying the rights of the native sentient species? (from the back cover of the DAW Books first edition)