Caught up in things far beyond his experience, 17-year-old Drenn has been drafted as a contract bearer to the Free mercenary company led by legendary Captain Yulan. Yulan's small company of warriors and Clevered power users are the last of the Free, as the school that trains the Clever wants all those who can wield the powers known as Entelech to be under their control. War is coming between the remnants of the kingdom of the Hommetic and the empire, and Yulan and his friends might be the only thing standing in the way.