For eight years humanity fought against the Bolst armada, crippling civilization with a biogenetic weapon unleashed across the globe. Where the rest of the world fell, Russia, the last human bastion, delivered a final blow, devastating the alien fleet and leaving the Bolst stranded on earth. Seventeen years after the fall, humanity has survived in pocket communities, many forming rivalries and returning to the depths of war. Meanwhile, the few survivors of the Bolst fleet continue to loom in the shadows. In the community of Sanctuary, Thomas Clarke watches over his home during the shaky aftermath of war, and the delicate peace that holds two cultures apart, but ready to fight once more. Almost a decade after her son's kidnapping, Laura Krell has never lost hope as she continues to search for her ex-husband, the man who stole her son, so she can bring her child home. Her search is stunted by the threat of returning war from the north as she navigates dangerous times to help her community. Korvik Tsyerkov, a veteran of the Bolst war, has traveled from his homeland to cross the vast ocean and explore what remains of humanity. As he finds himself in the center of two societies struggling to maintain peace, he will have to rely on his wits and skill, while both factions decide what to make of...The Newcomer