After Jeff Yi escaped from the hell of the Naval Academy, he thought his troubles were behind him. As a junior officer on a ship of the line, he could grow into the role so many seemed to expect of him. But when he barely survives an attack by a gang of fascist thugs, his past shockingly catches up to him. Instead of obscurity, he is given a command of his own – acting Captain of the smallest, ugliest ship in the fleet. As war looms, Yi must win over a hostile crew and face his own demons while battling an implacable foe that wants nothing less than the destruction of everything he has ever believed in.