It should have been easy.He had survived a pirate attack on his Imperial yacht, escaped the monazite mines, and crossed the plague-ridden savannah with the Spider Riders. Now, back at the head of his own Dome Militant, life ought to be simple. But King Teodor of Earth had not counted on his cousin Tomas-who, having seized power, has no intention of letting it go.Life should have been simpler.The king had been found. He was no longer branded a traitor, and now wore the rank of captain in the Dome Militant. Time, perhaps, to relax, to train, even to drink and dance. But now that Guy Erma is revealed as Prince Guillaume Erederon, so much more is expected-of him, and from him.Her dreams, too, should have been fulfilled.The king was restored, her debts to the alien Valvanchi repaid, and her work as a translator paid well. But one long-buried truth has risen to the surface: Marline is Imperial Princess Marie Rose. Now lords and princes circle like carrion, eager to claim her hand-and her power.The Dodecahedral Empire-twelve worlds, one crown-stands at the edge of ruin. One Emperor, old and failing. Many heirs wait in his shadow. Some fight for the crown. Others for the empire's soul.