After a cataclysmic interstellar war that came very close to exterminating humanity, the Daybreak Republic has risen from the ashes and embarked upon a mission to unite hundreds of human colony worlds under its banner, in hopes of preventing a second and final conflict that will complete the destruction of the human race. But not everyone agrees that the empire’s ends justify the means. Leo Morningstar, a young naval cadet, had a bright and shining career ahead of him, until he was caught in a compromising position that could have severely embarrassed his superiors if it had become public. Unable to cashier him, his superiors chose instead to promote him - and send him into de facto exile as commander of a broken down ship, in a sector that has only just been incorporated into the empire and remains infested with pirates, rebels, and corrupt local politicians more interested in feathering their nests then improving the lives of their people. And for a man as ambitious as Leo, there are opportunities aplenty to make a name for himself. They thought they were sending him into exile. But they might have exiled him to glory instead.

After a cataclysmic interstellar war that came very close to exterminating humanity, the Daybreak Republic has risen from the ashes and embarked upon a mission to unite hundreds of human colony worlds under its banner, in hopes of preventing a second and final conflict that will complete the destruction of the human race. But not everyone agrees that the empire’s ends justify the means. Daybreak has never faced a peer power, but as the rebels along the Rim start to get organised –backed by shadowy figures who may lurk far closer to the core worlds – it is only a matter of time before the Yangtze Sector, perhaps the entire Daybreak Republic, is plunged back into war, a war that will leave the sector in ruins and spark further conflict elsewhere. In a desperate bid to prevent an explosion, Commander Leo Morningstar sets off to infiltrate the rebels and locate their bases before all hell can break loose, unaware that it may already be too late … And that the greatest danger is the one that lurks in plain sight.