The Charted Systems are in pieces. Mercy's Pledge is destroyed, and her captain dead. With no homes to return to, the remaining crew sets off on a journey to find the mythical planet of Ardulum--a planet where Emn might find her people, and Neek the answers she's long sought. Finding the planet, however, brings a host of uncomfortable truths about Ardulum's vision for the galaxy and Neek's role in a religion that refuses to release her. Neek must balance her planet's past and the unchecked power of the Ardulans with a budding relationship and a surprising revelation about her own genealogy.