The chaos in Compound 17 continues, and then finally it happens – Compound 1 launches its long-delayed counterattack. Besieged and lacking solid leadership, it is a matter of time before things come apart at the seems. If Compound 17 falls, it won’t be long before the new powers come looking for the Outliers to provide the labor to man the well farms. 

In the desert, Jake and Rider must now decide on the best course of action if the Navigator clan is to survive. What is needed is for a decisive blow to be delivered against the militia. But how does that happen when you are a small clan with limited arms up against a militia whose weapons now include hybrid super-soldiers who are prepared to die without flinching?

Hovering in the background, like some unfathomable diabolic force, Nash remains as unpredictable as ever. Will the bounty hunter throw in his hat with Jake and the Navigators, or will he lean toward the new militia force that appears to be so all-powerful? Either way, can anyone trust a man with his pedigree?

Amidst all of this confusion, Summer must try to be a mother to her newborn twins and support both her husband and her son in their efforts to stabilize the clan. By necessity, the risks that both men take start to become more and more desperate, and Summer needs to remain their rock of stability.

As the immensity of the challenge that the Navigators are facing begins to become clear, many of the senior members come to realize that, short of a miracle, their losses will be huge. The best that they can hope for will be the survival of the children and the hope that they will one day carry on the legacy that the elders have handed down to them.