Lady Vlora Flint leads her mercenary company as they attempt to put down Palo uprisings in rural Fatrasta. The ruler of the country summons them to the capital of Landfall where she gives Lady Flint a new assignment: find the elusive head of the Palo rebels. Her local contact is Michel Bravis, a member of the Blackhat secret police, whose real mission is to identify the culprits who have been distributing "Sins of Empire " pamphlets, which denounce the current government. Meanwhile, an aging legend of earlier wars is rotting in prison until a mysterious stranger offers him freedom if he will spy on Lady Flint.