A single mistake nearly ends it all.The Scavenger's Phase Drive falters when an uncharted micro-singularity tears the ship from its course. Power vanishes, decks fracture, and Captain Elan Drex must hold his crew together while life support ticks down.As the crew fights to repair their wounded ship, an old foe rises: the pirate vessel Bloodreaver, commanded by Kulona-reborn from the wreckage of Kuegon through the cursed changeling virus. The enemy is stronger, crueler, and patient enough to strike when Scavenger is weakest.With no Phase Drive, dwindling weapons, and boarders flooding the halls, survival demands desperate measures. Dr. James Drex uncovers a terrible answer: Tranzine gas, a compound that accelerates the changeling virus. It may save the crew-but at what cost?Amidst the fire and fear, Kessa Rin gives birth to her daughter, Tirasha Liera Rin, a fragile symbol of hope aboard a ship built in the midst of war.Scarred but unbroken, the Scavenger crew must heal after the storm. Yet beyond their reprieve, whispers spread across the stars: the Tonan Empire is breaking from within. Civil war looms.