Take three young men from a ship-of-the-line in 1804, thrust them four hundred years into the future, give them some high-tech implants and a dash of illegal gene splicing, and you have a trio with a different approach than that of their new friends and companions. Harry, Ferghal, and Danny face the uncharted waters of the bitter conflict between the organizations known as the Consortium and the Confederation; these sailors are now without a known star to steer by.
Harry Nelson-Heron is, in appearance, an ordinary young man with some special talents. Other than his friend Ferghal O'Connor, Harry may be the only man who can stop the Consortium's plan to ruin the democratic Confederation's economy and impose their own oligarchy. In any century, a patronizing bully of a superior can make any man's life miserable, and for Harry, things haven't changed in four hundred years. Fortunately, Ferghal has crafted a better relationship with his superior, who encourages him to use his "antique" skills for recreation. These same skills will ultimately play an important part in the events to come, thanks in no small part to the incompetence of one individual in particular.
It's a desperate race for survival on an alien world for Sub-lieutenant Heron and his men. When they find shelter with a strange alien people and their even stranger Provider, things start to take a hopeful turn. Do they dare let their guards down?
