Synopsis: From the back cover of the 2020 paperback edition: "Chaos, created by factions determined to end the centuries-old accord between human settled worlds and Earth, is spreading at an alarming rate. Centralists, aided and abetted by their corporate paymasters, are working hard to destabilize sovereign star systems and strip them of independence. Only the Fleet's hard-pressed Special Forces can stop those who would foment a series of violent revolutions and trigger a bloody civil conflict capable of destroying humanity's interstellar civilization. And that means the best of those Special Forces units, Ghost Squadron, doesn't lack for missions. Disrupting riots aimed at toppling star system governments, seeking out and destroying the Centralist-owned security and intelligence agency's assets, eradicating cartels used as Centralist cat's-paws — no operation is too complex. However, each mission takes them deeper into the heart of darkness, and before the Fleet can declare victory, Ghost Squadron may come to resemble the enemies it fights. Yet not using all the means at its disposal could result in the deaths of billions. But will the Special Forces' legendary prowess and valor suffice, both to save humanity and Ghost Squadron's soul? Or will the Commonwealth experience the horrors of an existential war before the Fleet can arrest the spiral into madness?"