James Shelley has left his lover, Delphi, and his companion-in-arms,
Jayne Vasquez, with a fortune acquired from a fallen oligarch. They
believe him to be dead, and he doesn't try to set the record straight.
His long-running question has been answered: There are other soldiers
like him who have served the purposes of the Red--and he has accepted
his place among them.
As a soldier of the Red he pursues covert missions designed to nudge
history away from existential threats--but that doesn't mean the world
is growing more orderly. It's only in the froth of a "managed chaos"
that human potential can grow and thrive. Shelley's missions eventually
take him into orbit--and into conflict with those he loves--Delphi and
Jaynie--who are determined to escape the influence of the Red.