Aurelia Peri is used to being an outsider. As if being the adopted daughter of the galaxy's most powerful man weren't enough, she also has to deal with the stigma of being part machine. Which is why she's dead-set on proving her worth. But when her first mission as a D.I.S.C. agent ends disastrously, and then her suspect-a man accused of murdering and cannibalizing his own family-proclaims innocence and launches himself off the top of a building, she fears she'll never be trusted with another case. Auri has doubts about the man's guilt and is certain there's more to the case. She decides to dig deeper when her superiors suddenly order her to drop it, and her surreptitious investigation reveals a series of crimes she is convinced are connected. Determined to uncover the truth, Auri discovers an unfathomable darkness hidden in the depths of the galaxy. A darkness that threatens everything she holds dear. A darkness connected to her own past. And Auri's involvement in the case doesn't go unnoticed. Something in the system has caught her scent and will stop at nothing to catch its prey.