Yun Ye was once the sharpest blade in the Star Abyss, fighting bloody battles for the Empire, until an act of betrayal sent him plunging into the Zero-Degree Abyss. Seven years later, he has returned, his loyal facade shed, with nothing left in his eyes but the cold dust of the stars. Jiang Su was the starship doctor he once personally protected. Now she has founded an independent army, reshaping the course of war with her medical skill and intelligence. With their old vows reduced to ashes, she no longer tends his wounds, and he no longer plucks stars for her. Fate brings them together again on the front lines, as a swarm of insectoids erupts. One is the soul of a wanted rebel; the other, a celebrated new leader. Between them, there is no master and servant anymore, only the silence of blades facing off.
