All of Sharud is singing about a man in a hood. He could be a hero--if he wasn't so determined to destroy himself. Robb Locke is doing his best to hit bottom, and even his childhood friends Ged Gizab n and Marah Mad n can't help.

Explosions, riots, political unrest, assassination, and the threat of starvation are still swirling through the entire system. And now the Parl Regent Jun Planetagen's flagship has entered orbit for the First Harvest F te. Jun has plans of his own, especially for Marah--and those plans are murderous indeed.

The war is over, but "peace" is always a relative term...