Dark days have come to the Lether Empire. Purges of the secret police of the Patriots, wars on distant corners of the Empire with peoples that supposedly have already been subjugated, a strange partisan army that has landed in the center of the Empire, and, on top of that, a looming financial crisis. Only the Emperor’s life remains unchanged—battles, deaths, and resurrections. But among the contenders, Ikaris has shown up—and no one can predict how his duel will end (or even whether it will).