Trained to fight, lead, and sail the ocean that is space, Nel Vaughn has the makings of a hero. She should have been the best, but Nel forsake a career with the Alliance and now sails the Free Lanes on the Tantamount with its misfit crew, Kitsune cabin girl, and absent-minded captain. During a stopover for repairs, Nel and the Tantamount are coerced into ferrying medical cargo to a planet at war. Complicating the job are the Tantamount's unwanted passengers-a Guildswoman; her golem; and a charming, mysterious stranger-each with their own agenda. When Nel discovers the sinister truth behind their mercy mission, her simple goal of keeping her ship intact and her crew safe seems impossible, unless Nel chooses to be the hero she was meant to be.
