Hexarchate Captain Kel Cheris disgraced herself with unconventional combat tactics. The command gives her one last chance to regain honor by recapturing the Fortress of Scattered Needles, captured by heretics. It's not just Cherice's career that's at stake. If the space fortress remains in the hands of the rebels, the hexarchate will fall next. Cheris's only hope is an alliance with the undead General Jedao, a visionary, Arch-Traitor and madman. He won battles that could not be won, and only his military genius was able to capture the fortress. In his first life, he went mad and completely destroyed both armies, one of which he commanded himself, but now he is just a ghost in the “black cradle.” The closer the end of the siege, the more Cheris has questions for the general. Is he really that crazy? What is he planning? Could she be his next victim?