Risk is high...and life is cheap Three centuries ago, the Earth was abandoned - and the Stellar Collective was formed. Now their deathbirds do the dirty work - an intergalactic kamikaze fighting force made up of criminals sentenced to die for their offenses against the State and Nature. But for the 50 percent who survive the training, the reprieve is merely temporary... For this time their mission is to a distant, primitive planet outside Realized Space that stands in the way of the Universal Will. The planet must be subjected, completely and for all time - as the Collective Landing Detachment races toward what may prove to be the largest and most terrible battle in the history of the galaxy. And once engaged, death is a most acceptable sacrifice. Except the "expendable" CLD has other plans...