In 2215, the mega-cities of the T'ang Dynasty begin to crumble as war ripples across the earth. It is a time of change, of endings, of beginnings. And approaching through space, a ship is passing invisibly onward to its destiny. In it is the rebel DeVore, a master of stealth, thought dead by his enemies, but very much alive. He and the other exiles now turn homeward from Pluto, from Mars, and from the unknown to fight one last battle for Earth.