On the wild planet of Talamh, humanity thrived... ...until the Alfur conquered their world. Now, defeated and broken, humanity serves their alien overlords. And looks to the stars for a hero. Rydian Holt is nothing, nobody-just another human from the slums of Talamh. But when his mother is caught up in the slaughter of a fledgeling resistance group, Rydian's entire family is thrown into infamy. His fellow humans brand him traitor, while the Alfur hail his mother a hero. Desperate to clear his name, Rydian must delve into his mother's past, and the secrets she sought to uncover. Secrets about the Alfur, about their alien technology-and the mysterious Light that powers their world.