It is the best-kept and worst-kept secret in the Planetary Union navy. The PUV James Keeling, a warship that does things that no other ship can do. It is a weapon, and a liability. The rumor is that eighty percent of the people assigned to the Keeling die before their two-year stint is up. That rumor is the reason for the ship’s nickname—they call the Keeling “the Crypt,” because it is full of the dead. Those with a promising career, those with connections, those that can can avoid service on the Keeling do just that. But still, the ship must fight, and for that, it needs a crew. The navy assigns the worst of the worst: cowards, thieves, murderers, rapists or those with nowhere else to go, no way to opt out. Your choice is simple: be executed for your crimes, or serve two years on the keeling. If you make it out alive, your record is wiped clean and you get a fresh start. For this crew of just over 100 souls, it will be the longest two years they have ever faced. What is this ship? Where did it come from? And why, oh, why, won’t everyone stop screaming …