Fan fiction novel based on the Battletech setting. Set in the year 3020, Richard Gray, a young aristocrat from the Federated Suns, was expected to inherit his father's title and fief after graduating from military academy, but this did not happen due to the intrigues of his great uncle. The young man receives only the family fighting mechanism and a certain amount of money. Upset by such injustice, the young man abandons his career in the local regiment and decides to go to the mercenary planet Galatea in search of adventure and glory. There he meets young people who have become “free birds” for various reasons. Together they formed the core of a squad called “Phoenix”, because each of them began their lives with a clean slate. A contract was soon signed. At first glance, the task seemed simple - to knock out a small gang of pirates from a remote planetoid. But the employer also wanted to return the stolen property. It was because of this requirement that the party had to use various tricks to lure the raiders into a trap. When it turned out that one of the local residents was a traitor helping the corsairs, the hope for a successful outcome of the matter practically disappeared... I don’t know whose cover design it was, but the cover itself was made by me.