The fragile peace safeguarding the Interstellar Alliance trembles as mysterious attacks on vital trade lanes threaten to ignite a new war. Lennier risks everything to reveal the shocking truth: the aggressors are none other than the Centauri Republic, signaling a dangerous return to imperial ambition.

Meanwhile, Garibaldi faces a battle far closer to home. Confronted by his past and his present, he is challenged by Lise, who refuses to look away from his growing reliance on alcohol. In a raw and revealing moment, Garibaldi admits that the bottle may be the only thing granting him a sense of control in a universe spinning beyond his grasp forcing him to confront the cost of survival in the aftermath of war.

Leta’s journey takes a profound turn. No longer content to be merely a passive observer, she begins to test the full extent of ...